The Effect of Aromatherapy Treatment on Fatigue and Relaxation for Mothers during the Early Puerperal Period in Japan: A Pilot Study.
Kyoko Asazawa, Yoshihiro Kato, Atsuko Yamaguchi and 1 others
PMID 29043282WHAT IT FOUND
After a single 20-minute aromatherapy hand massage, 29 postpartum mothers reported lower fatigue and higher relaxation.
Without a control group, this pilot cannot separate treatment from normal recovery.
Key findings
01Fatigue median scores moved from 10.0 to 5.0, and relaxation median scores moved from 20.0 to 35.0, with P<0.001 for both.
02Most participants rated the intervention positively: 77.8% were satisfied with the treatment methods, and 89.6% felt the implementation time was appropriate and increased comfort.
03The open-ended responses produced five categories, including increased relaxation and comfortable feeling, plus suggestions to improve technique and thoughtfulness.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
There was no control group, no massage-only comparison, and no randomisation, so natural postpartum recovery or time cannot be separated from the aromatherapy. Only 29 mothers were analysed, and data collection was at a single hospital, so the results may not generalise. The post-test was only about 24 hours after the pre-test and after one treatment, so the study cannot show how long any effect lasts. Post-test timing varied by a few hours because of meals and breastfeeding. The fatigue scale was originally for working populations and was modified, and participants were asked about current symptoms rather than the previous month.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the significant fatigue and relaxation changes as proof that aromatherapy caused them. The study had no control group, so normal postpartum recovery, massage, attention, or time cannot be ruled out.