Single and Combined Use of Benson Relaxation Technique and Oxygen Therapy on Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting in Gastric Cancer Patients

• Published in: Explore (New York, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2023-07, Vol.19 (4), p.587-593
• Main Authors: Moradi, Yaser, Jafarizadeh, Hossein, Asghari, Rahim, Mirzamohammadi, Omid, Alinejad, Vahid
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antineoplastic Agents - adverse effects; Benson relaxation technique; Chemotherapy; Gastric cancer; Humans; Nausea; Nausea - chemically induced; Nausea - therapy; Oxygen - therapeutic use; Oxygen therapy; Relaxation Therapy; Single-Blind Method; Stomach Neoplasms - chemically induced; Stomach Neoplasms - drug therapy; Vomiting; Vomiting - drug therapy; Vomiting - therapy
• ISSN: 1550-8307; 1878-7541
• DOI: 10.1016/j.explore.2022.11.006

•Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea, Vomiting, and retching (CINVR) are one of the common side effects and fears encountered by patients undergoing chemotherapy.•Useing of the benson relaxation technique and its combination with oxygen therapy is more successful in managing CINVR.•Nurses can provide the benson relaxation technique as a part of nursing routine care for patients who wish to have the advantages of this method. Nausea and vomiting are the most common complications of chemotherapy encountered by cancer patients. To alleviate these complications and reduce patients' problems, it is necessary to use complementary methods. The present study aimed to investigate the effect of single and combined use of the Benson relaxation technique and oxygen therapy on chemotherapy-induced nausea, vomiting, and retching in patients with gastric cancer. This is a single-blind, four-arm, 2 × 2 factorial-design randomized clinical trial, in which a total of 100 patients with gastric cancer were enrolled and assigned to four groups of relaxation therapy, oxygen therapy, combined therapy, and control (n = 25 in each group) using simple random allocation. The intervention program included the application of Benson relaxation technique, supplemental oxygen therapy, and a combination of both. The control group merely received routine care. Data were collected using the Rhodes Index of Nausea and Vomiting Form 2 (INV-2). The results of the Kruskal-Wallis H test showed that there was a statistically significant difference in the mean scores of nausea, vomiting, retching, and acute phase between the four groups (p = 0.001). However, there was a statistically significant difference only in the mean score of retching in this regard for the delayed phase (p = 0.02). Overall, the single use of Benson relaxation technique and the combined use of this technique and oxygen therapy were shown to be more effective in managing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.