Aromatherapy in labor pain relief - comfort theory: scoping review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29352/mill0215e.36039Keywords:
aromatherapy; labor painAbstract
Introduction: Labor pain emerges as a complex and multifactorial experience, standing out as one of the factors that can have a significant impact on the childbirth experience. Establishing an adequate strategy for its control reflects not only an ethical duty of healthcare professionals but also a right of parturients. Among the non-pharmacological methods that can be integrated during labor, aromatherapy emerges as a promoter of physical, mental, and spiritual well-being.
Objective: To map the scientific evidence regarding the benefits of aromatherapy in relieving labor pain.
Methodology: The Scoping Review was conducted following the PRISMA-ScR methodology, the eligibility criteria suggested by the Joanna Briggs Institute method, and the PCC mnemonic: population, concept, and context. The search was performed in the databases of the National Library of Medicine (PubMed), CINAHL Complete, MEDLINE Complete, Nursing & Allied Health Collection: Comprehensive, MedicLatina, Biblioteca do Conhecimento Online (B-On), and Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO). Studies published in Portuguese and English were included, with a time limit of 2022-2024. The identified articles were organized in Rayyan®, and two independent reviewers assessed the relevance of the articles extracted and synthesized the data.
Results: Twelve articles were included in the review. After analyzing them, 4 themes emerged: types of essential oils used in aromatherapy for pain relief during labor, methods of implementing aromatherapy during labor, benefits of aromatherapy during labor, and duration of the effects of aromatherapy throughout labor.
Conclusion: The present review highlights the potential of aromatherapy as a non-pharmacological approach for pain relief during labor or as an integrative and complementary practice due to its ease of use, safety, and low cost. In addition to pain relief, aromatherapy has also been associated with other benefits, such as reducing the stress and anxiety of laboring women, a potential decrease in the duration of labor, and even an increase in readiness to initiate breastfeeding after delivery without any recorded side effects for the newborn.
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