Effect of the coughing technique during subcutaneous heparin injection on pain severity and individual satisfaction.
Dilek Yılmaz, Dilan Ayhan, Derya Uzelli Yılmaz and 1 others
PMID 37194813WHAT IT FOUND
Patients who coughed moderately during subcutaneous heparin injections reported less pain and higher satisfaction than with standard injection.
The coughing technique is simple, free, and requires no extra equipment, offering a practical non-pharmacological option for nurses.
Key findings
01The mean pain severity score was 25.89 mm for the coughing technique compared to 52.30 mm for the standard technique on a 100 mm scale.
02Patient satisfaction scores were significantly higher after injections administered with the coughing technique (92.09 mm) than with the standard technique (76.19 mm).
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study used a convenience sample from a single general surgery clinic, limiting generalizability. The injection site was restricted to the outer upper arm, so results may not apply to other common sites like the abdomen. The dose was fixed at 0.6 mL, which may not reflect all clinical heparin prescriptions. The quasi-experimental design lacks the rigorous controls of a randomized controlled trial, increasing the risk of bias.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume this technique works for all injection sites or patient populations, as the study was limited to the upper arm in general surgery patients. The lack of a true randomized controlled design means the observed benefits could be influenced by unmeasured factors.