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Effects of Expressive Touch on Pain and Anxiety Levels of Pediatric Patients Hospitalized in an Intensive Care Unit
Serap Yegin1, Hasret Yağmur Sevinç Akın2
1Department of Nursing, Viransehir School of Health, Harran University, Şanlıurfa, Turkey.
Insights
Expressive touch significantly reduced pain and anxiety in children within intensive care units. This simple intervention offers a valuable method for improving pediatric patient comfort and well-being.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Intensive Care
- Nursing Interventions
- Pain Management
Background:
- Hospitalization in intensive care units (ICUs) can elevate pain and anxiety in children.
- Effective, non-pharmacological interventions are needed to manage distress in pediatric ICU patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of expressive touch on pain and anxiety levels in hospitalized pediatric ICU patients.
Main Methods:
- An interventional study with pretest-posttest, control group design.
- 45 children received expressive touch; 45 served as controls in an ICU setting.
- Data collected via Personal Information Form, Visual Analogue Scale-Pain, and State-Trait Anxiety Scale for Children.
Main Results:
- The expressive touch group showed significant reductions in pain (p < .05) and trait anxiety (p < .05) scores post-intervention.
- No significant changes in pain or anxiety scores were observed in the control group.
- Previous hospitalization status influenced State Anxiety Inventory scores (p < .05).
Conclusions:
- Expressive touch effectively decreases pain and anxiety in pediatric ICU patients.
- This technique is a practical and beneficial method for alleviating distress in critically ill children.
- Expressive touch can be integrated into nursing care to enhance patient comfort.
Purpose:
The study was conducted to investigate the effect of expressive touch, on the pain and anxiety levels of children who were hospitalized in an intensive care unit.
Methods:
This study was an interventional design with pretest-posttest, study and control group. The sample consisted of 45 children in the expressive touch group and 45 children in the control group who were hospitalized in an intensive care unit. The study's data was collected using the the Personal Information Form, Visual Analogue Scale-Pain and State-Trait Anxiety Scale for Children.
Results:
The mean score the children in the expressive touch group obtained from the Visual Analogue Scale-Pain was 6.20 ± 0.89 before the intervention and 5.26 ± 0.65 after the intervention (p < .05). In the expressive touch group, the mean state anxiety score was 48.73 ± 3.56 before the procedure and 46.37 ± 2.19 after the procedure; the mean trait anxiety score was 48.51 ± 5.01 before the procedure and 38.37 ± 3.28 after the procedure (p < .05). As for the mean scores obtained from the Visual Analogue Scale-Pain and state-trait anxiety inventory by the children in the control group, there were no statistically significant differences between their pre- and postintervention mean scores. There was a significant difference between the participants' pre- and postintervention State Anxiety Inventory scores in terms of the variable regarding their previous hospitalization status (p < .05).
Conclusions:
The study revealed that the pain and anxiety levels of pediatric patients staying in an intensive care unit decreased after the implementation of the expressive touch technique.
Clinical Implications:
The treatment of children in the intensive care unit increases their pain and anxiety. Expressive touch, which is an easy practice, can be used as a method to reduce pain and anxiety.
