Relaxing Environment Lowers Anxiety During Chemodenervation: a Randomized Trial.

Area of Science:

• Urology
• Patient Experience
• Pain Management

Background:

• Intradetrusor onabotulinumtoxinA injections for overactive bladder (OAB) can cause patient anxiety and discomfort.
• Aromatherapy and music are known to reduce procedure-related anxiety and pain.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate if a relaxing environment (lavender aromatherapy, calming music, dim lighting) reduces anxiety before intradetrusor chemodenervation.
• To assess secondary outcomes including pain, patient satisfaction, and staff energy levels.

Main Methods:

• Single-center randomized trial involving women undergoing office intradetrusor chemodenervation for OAB.
• Participants were randomized to a relaxing or typical office environment.
• Anxiety and pain were measured using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS).

Main Results:

• Patients in the relaxing environment showed a significant reduction in anxiety (P=0.015).
• Pain reduction was observed in the relaxing group but did not reach statistical significance.
• Patient satisfaction was high and similar in both groups; staff energy levels were unaffected.

Conclusions:

• A relaxing environment incorporating lavender aromatherapy, calming music, and dim lighting effectively decreases patient anxiety before office-based intradetrusor chemodenervation.
• This noninvasive technique is easily implemented to improve patient comfort during OAB procedures.