Management of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) by an aroma-massage with acupressure treatment protocol: a randomized clinical trial

Fung JKK, Tsang HW
Journal of Clinical Nursing, 2017


AIMS AND OBJECTIVES:

This study evaluates the clinical effectiveness of a multi-component aroma-massage with an acupressure treatment protocol and compared it to cognitive training for the management of BPSD.

BACKGROUND:

Pharmacological interventions have been unsatisfactory in managing BPSD; thus, complementary and alternative medicine has been extensively researched to identify an adjunct safe and cost-effective intervention.

DESIGN:

This RCT utilized a three-arm parallel group design. Cognitive training was used as a conventional intervention to manage BPSD, whereas exercise was considered “treatment as usual” in this study; both were used as comparisons with the experimental protocol. There were three treatment groups: Group 1: aroma-massage with acupressure + exercise; Group 2: cognitive training + exercise; and Group 3: aroma-massage with acupressure + cognitive training.

METHOD:

Sixty older adults were recruited and randomly assigned to the three groups (20 each). Using the 29-item Chinese Version of the Cohen-Mansfield Agitation Inventory, Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Mini-mental State Examination, and Barthel Index-20, the outcome measures were assessed at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and the 3-month follow-up to assess behaviour, ADL, cognition, and BPSD severity and distress. Multiple comparisons performed through repeated measures were analysed to detect between-group differences and within-subject differences, as well as the interaction effects between groups and times.

RESULTS:

The Group 1 and 3 participants showed a significant reduction in the severity and distress caused by BPSD, whereas group 2 did not demonstrate similar effects.

CONCLUSIONS:

This clinical study suggests that aroma massage with acupressure is as effective as cognitive training and can enhance cognitive training in reducing the severity and distress of BPSD.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE:

Aroma-massage with acupressure may serve as an adjunct therapy to reduce BPSD. This therapy is safe, cost-effective and can be implemented by caregivers and family members who are not professionally trained. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

CITATION:

Fung JKK, Tsang HW et al. Management of behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) by an aroma-massage with acupressure treatment protocol: a randomized clinical trial J Clin Nurs. 2017 Oct 6. doi: 10.1111/jocn.14101.


 
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