Foot reflexology on 105 hemodialysis patients

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The effect of foot reflexology and back massage on hemodialysispatients' fatigue and sleep quality

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study is to examine the effectiveness of foot reflexology and back massage on optimizing the sleep quality and reducing the fatigue of hemodialysis patients.

Methods: The study includes 105 volunteer patients who were registered at a private dialysis clinic and were receiving hemodialysis treatment. Foot reflexology and back massage were administered to the patients two times a week for four weeks. The Visual Analogue Scale for Fatigue and the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index were used to collect data.

Results: The differences between the pretest and posttest score averages of the patients on the Visual Analogue Scale for Fatigue and the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index were statistically significant (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: Foot reflexology and back massage were shown to improve the sleep quality and reduce the fatigue of hemodialysis patients. Compared to back massage, foot reflexology was determined to be more effective.

Keywords: Back massage; Fatigue; Foot reflexology; Hemodialysis; Nursing; Sleep quality.

The effect of foot reflexology on hemodialysis patients’ fatigue and sleep quality

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Citation:

Unal KS, Balci Akpinar R. The effect of foot reflexology and back massage on hemodialysis patients’ fatigue and sleep quality. Complement Ther Clin Pract. 2016;24:139–144. doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2016.06.004

Actionable Information for Reflexologists

In this section you will find how this research paper enacted reflexology to produce these results. We at Reflexology.Report distilled the Methodology portion of this research paper and we are presenting you with:

  • General methods used
  • Organization and duration of sessions
  • Reflexology points

The purpose of this section is to make this research paper useful to all reflexologists. This is a tool developed by the Center of Reflexology and Research (Κέντρο Ρεφλεξολογίας και Έρευνας) in Greece and supervised volunteers from across the world.

English

The foot reflexology group was given foot reflexology two days a week for four weeks (a total of 8 sessions). The patients were administered foot reflexology for 30 min, 15 min for each foot. Three to five drops of baby oil were applied at room temperature to facilitate the massage [9,10]. Particular attention should be given to avoiding applying the baby oil in large amounts, as it is thought to decrease the amount of pressure.
Foot reflexology begins with relaxation exercises, which involve thumb, finger and squeezing movements and rubbing and patting actions. The application of foot reflexology is performed in a top to down manner, where the actual massage starts on the pituitary gland, hypothalamus, brain and pineal body points of the big toe, followed by massage on the medulla spinalis body point, which is located on the area stretching from the big toe to the middle of the back side of the heel.
Pressure is then applied to the solar plexus, after which reflexology techniques are applied to all of the areas corresponding to the nerve projections on the feet. The foot reflexology ends with the performance of the same relaxation exercises mentioned above

Ελληνικά

Η ομάδα της ρεφλεξολογίας δέχθηκε ρεφλεξολογία δύο φορές την εβδομάδα για τέσσερις εβδομάδες (στο σύνολο 8 συνεδρίες). Οι δέκτες δέχθηκαν ρεφλεξολογία για 30 λεπτά, 15 λεπτά σε κάθε κάτω άκρο. Τρεις με πέντε σταγόνες παιδικού λαδιού σε θερμοκρασία δωματίου εφαρμόστηκαν για τη διευκόλυνση της μάλαξης. Ιδιαίτερη προσοχή πρέπει να δοθεί στο να μην εφαρμοστεί το λάδι σε μεγάλη ποσότητα καθώς θεωρείται ότι μειώνει την ένταση της πίεσης.

Η ρεφλεξολογία στο πέλμα ξεκινάει με τεχνικές χαλάρωσης, που συμπεριλαμβάνουν κινήσεις με τον αντίχειρα, το δάχτυλο καθώς και κινήσεις πίεσης και θωπείες. Η ρεφλεξολογία εφαρμόζεται από πάνω προς τα κάτω, συγκεκριμένα από την υπόφυση, τον υποθάλαμο, τον εγκέφαλο, την επίφυση στο μεγάλο δάχτυλο, ακολουθείται στη συνέχεια από πίεση στη σπονδυλική στήλη, την οποία εντοπίζουμε στην περιοχή από το μεγάλο δάκτυλο εώς το πίσω μέρος της φτέρνας. Μετά εφαρμόζεται πίεση στο ηλιακό πλέγμα και ακολουθούν ρεφλεξολογικές τεχνικές που εφαρμόζονται σε όλες τις περιοχές που συσχετίζονται με νευρικές απολήψεις στα πέλματα. Η συνεδρία κλείνει με την εφαρμογή των ίδιων τεχνικών χαλάρωσης που αναφέρθηκαν πιο πάνω.

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