The Efficacy of Foot Massage for Pain Relief of Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy: A Meta-analysis Study

Abstract

Background: Foot massage may have some potential in improving pain relief in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy, and this meta-analysis aims to explore the impact of foot massage on pain control after laparoscopic cholecystectomy.Materials and Methods: PubMed, EMbase, Web of science, EBSCO, and Cochrane library databases were systematically searched, and we included randomized controlled trials assessing the effect of foot massage on pain control after laparoscopic cholecystectomy.Results: Five randomized controlled trials were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, compared with control intervention for laparoscopic cholecystectomy, foot massage was associated with significantly lower pain scores at 60 minutes [mean difference (MD) = −1.19; 95% CI = −2.01 to −0.38; P = 0.004), pain scores at 90 minutes (MD = −1.41; 95% CI = −1.73 to −1.10; P < 0.00001), pain scores at 120 to 150 minutes (MD = −2.20; 95% CI = −2.49 to −1.90; P < 0.00001) and reduced need of additional analgesia (odd ratio = 0.04; 95% CI = 0.02-0.08; P < 0.00001), but demonstrated no obvious effect on pain scores at 10 to 30 minutes (MD = −0.25; 95% CI = −0.79 to 0.29; P = 0.37).Conclusions: Foot massage benefits to improve pain control after laparoscopic cholecystectomy.