Wu Chiu-Yen, Lee Hsiu-Fang, Chang C W, Chiang Hui-Chu, Tsai Yu-Hsia, Liu Hsueh-Erh
Department of Cosmetic Science, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2020 Nov 23;2020:8830083. doi: 10.1155/2020/8830083. eCollection 2020.
Occupational stress is a common issue faced by workers in every discipline. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies, such as aromatherapy massage or massage, have antistress effects in the literature. The purpose of this randomized clinical trial with triple blinds is to evaluate the immediate effects of lavender aromatherapy massage for improving work stress, burnout, and HRV parameters of female employees in a university.
A total of 53 subjects in experimental group whereas 57 subjects in control group completed interventions and measurement and led to power of 0.98. Inferential statistics, as independent -test, paired -test, and Chi-Square test, were performed to verify the expected relationships.
The present study found that subjects in experimental group reported a lower role stress and less inclined to type A personality trait after aromatherapy massage with lavender. For control group, only less inclined to type A personality trait was reported after receiving massage. For burnout, a significant lower personal burnout and work-related burnout were reported after aromatherapy massage whereas only increased client-related burnout was reported in control group. For HRV, both the experimental and control groups reported higher SDNN and RMSSD in time domain after intervention. Contradictory HRT and PSI in time domain were significantly lower after intervention. In frequency domain of HRV, both groups reported significantly higher value in VLF and HF. In addition, the experimental group reported significantly higher value in TP and LF after intervention.
Both the lavender aromatherapy massage and massage did show immediate effect on different dimensions of work stress, burnout, and HRV. These two interventions can be applied as routine leisure activities by personal preference to reduce stresses occurring in work environment.
职业压力是各个学科领域的工作者面临的常见问题。补充和替代医学（CAM）疗法，如香薰按摩或普通按摩，在文献中具有抗应激作用。这项三盲随机临床试验的目的是评估薰衣草香薰按摩对改善某大学女性员工工作压力、倦怠和心率变异性（HRV）参数的即时效果。
实验组共有53名受试者，对照组有57名受试者完成了干预和测量，检验效能为0.98。采用独立样本t检验、配对样本t检验和卡方检验等推断性统计方法来验证预期关系。
本研究发现，实验组受试者在接受薰衣草香薰按摩后报告角色压力较低，且不太倾向于A型人格特质。对于对照组，仅在接受按摩后报告不太倾向于A型人格特质。对于倦怠，香薰按摩后报告个人倦怠和工作相关倦怠显著降低，而对照组仅报告与客户相关的倦怠增加。对于HRV，干预后实验组和对照组在时域上的标准差值（SDNN）和连续差值的均方根（RMSSD）均较高。干预后时域上的心率减速力（HRT）和压力指数（PSI）显著降低。在HRV的频域中，两组在极低频（VLF）和高频（HF）方面均报告有显著更高的值。此外，干预后实验组在总功率（TP）和低频（LF）方面报告有显著更高的值。
薰衣草香薰按摩和普通按摩均对工作压力、倦怠和HRV的不同维度显示出即时效果。这两种干预措施可根据个人喜好作为日常休闲活动来减轻工作环境中产生的压力。
