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Progressive muscle relaxation for patients with chronic schizophrenia: A randomized controlled study
Shu-Min Lu1, Mei-Feng Lin2, Hsiu-Ju Chang3
1School of Nursing, Hsin Sheng Junior College of Medical Care and Management, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Purpose:
To evaluate progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) as an intervention for anxiety, psychotic symptoms, and quality of life (QOL) in patients with chronic schizophrenia.
Design And Methods:
Eighty patients were recruited from a Taiwanese psychiatry ward. The intervention group received group PMR; control group received treatment-as-usual.
Results:
The results indicated that PMR might have a short-term effect on reducing anxiety, improving psychotic syndromes, and QOL among patients with chronic schizophrenia; however, the effectiveness at the 3-month follow-up was not evident.
Practice Implications:
Both the psychiatric patients and the health institutions may be able to list PMR as a clinical routine care, and then become a mental health practice strategy for mental patients to improve the quality of mental care.
Implications For Nursing Practice:
Our studies suggest that prevention of severe mental illness among patients with schizophrenia requires PMR interventions. PMR had an immediate effect, and it is possible that a shorter intervention period using this approach would also be successful.
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