Effects of foot reflexology on dysmenorrhea: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

The present study aimed to determine the effects of foot reflexology on dysmenorrhea. Materials and Methods: A randomize controlled trial design was used. This study included 29 student is in the intervention, 29 student in placebo groups. In the reflexology group, the subjects received 8 reflexology sessions (30 minutes each) in two consecutive mense cycles. The placebo groups , the subjects received 8 foot massage sessions (30 minutes each) in two consecutive mense cycles. To assess the severity of dysmenorrhea, Visual Anolog Scala and Verbal category scale were used in this study. Results: When VAS mean scores of the experimental and placebo groups during 4 follow-up periods were compared, it was found that there is not a statistically significant difference between experimental and placebo groups. Conclusion: Results showed that reflexology and placebo foot massage might be effective in decreasing dysmenorrhea. It is recommended that the students suffering from dysmenorrhea problems should be informed on the foot and reflexology massage. Amaç: Bu çalışma ayak refleksolojinin dismenore üzerine etkisini belirlemek amacıyla yapılmıştır. Gereç ve Yöntem: Randomize kontrollü çalışma dızaynı kullanılmıştır. Bu çalışmada 29 öğrenci müdahale grubunda, 29 öğrenci placebo grubunda yer almıştır. Refleksoloji grubu, birbirini izleyen iki menstrual siklus 8 refleksoloji oturumu (her biri 30 dakika) yapılmıştır. Plasebo grubu ise birbirini izleyen iki mentrual siklus 8 ayak masajı oturumu (her biri 30 dakika) yapılmıştır. Bu çalışmada dismenorenin şiddeti Visual Analog Skala ve Sözel Kategori Ölçeği ile değerlendirilmiştir. Bulgular: Dört izlem periyodunda deney ve placebo grubu karşılaştırıldığında gruplar arasında istatistiksel olarak fark olmadığı bulunmuştur. Sonuç: Çalışmanın sonuçları refleksoloji ve plasebo ayak masajının dismenoeyi azaltmada etkili olduğunu göstermektedir. Dismenore problem olan öğrencilere ayak ve refleksoloji masajı hakkında bilgilendirme yapılması önerilebilir.

Manual Therapy in Primary Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…All studies were published between January 1999 and 2019, with 18 studies published in Chinese [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35] and 14 in English. [36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49] The PRISMA flowchart of the screening process is shown in Figure 1.…”

“…Among these, 18 studies were conducted in the Chinese mainland, [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35] 5 in Iran, 36,37,39,40,47 2 in Germany, 45,46 3 in Taiwan, [41][42][43] and 1 each in HongKong, 48 America, 44 Italy, 38 and Turkey. 49 The age of participants ranged from 14 to 41 years, and the duration of symptoms varied from a mean of 3 months to 17 years. Across the 32 studies, manual therapy consisted various techniques, with 15 studies focusing on massage, 10 on acupressure, 2 on foot reflexology, 2 on holographic therapy, 2 on spinal manipulative therapy, and 1 on neuromuscular therapy.…”

“…Details are presented in Table 1. In terms of outcome reporting, the VAS was the most frequently utilized, with 15 studies 18,24,28,30,33,[36][37][38][41][42][43][44][47][48][49] providing relevant data. Following closely, 14 studies 19,20,[22][23][24]26,27,[29][30][31][32][33][34][35] reported effect rates, all originating from China.…”

“…Notably, in 4 studies, 27,30,33,36 the randomization methods were considered to pose a high risk of bias, whereas the randomization methods were deemed appropriate in 13 studies. 18,[23][24][25]37,39,40,[43][44][45][46][47]49 Additionally, 15 studies [19][20][21][22]26,28,29,31,32,34,35,38,41,42,48 did not provide specific details regarding the generation of random sequences. Allocation concealment was implemented in 4 studies.…”

“…Allocation concealment was implemented in 4 studies. 36,43,45,49 Except for 1 study 36 reporting blinding of participants, the remaining studies [18][19][20][22][23][24][25][26][27]31,[33][34][35][44][45][46]21,[28][29][30]32,[37][38][39][40][41][42][43]48,49,47 did not furnish information on blinding. Notably, details of missing data were not reported in any of the enrolled studies, suggesting an absence of selective reporting bias.…”