Department of Nursing, Camillian Saint Mary's Hospital Luodong, Yilan, Taiwan.
Graduate Institute of Integration of Traditional Chinese Medicine with Western Nursing, National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Sciences, Taipei, Taiwan.
J Obstet Gynaecol. 2022 Jul;42(5):1204-1210. doi: 10.1080/01443615.2021.1945007. Epub 2021 Sep 24.
The effect of warm-water footbath in improving dysmenorrhoea has been rarely investigated. The study aimed to examine whether a warm-water footbath effectively reduces dysmenorrhoea pain and improves the autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity. The randomised controlled trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov. (NCT04071028) We enrolled college students with dysmenorrhoea in Northern Taiwan from December 1 2013 to June 30 2014, and randomised them into footbath ( = 35, median age 19 years) and control groups ( = 33, 18 years). Pain visual analogue scale and Short-Form McGill Pain Questionnaire were used for pain assessment, while heart rate variability (HRV) was measured to assess ANS function. After the interventions, the footbath group significantly improved ANS activity and reduced pain severity comparing to the control group. Furthermore, the changes in HRV positively correlated with the improvement of pain severity. In conclusion, a warm-water footbath is beneficial in improving the pain severity among college students with dysmenorrhoea.Impact Statement Dysmenorrhoea is the most common gynaecological condition affecting 34-94% of young women. The existing conventional therapeutic strategies for dysmenorrhoea have potential adverse events. Among the complementary therapies for pain, the warm-water footbath is a widely used thermal therapy in improving peripheral neuropathy symptoms and improving patients' quality of life. The subjects with dysmenorrhoea associate with significantly altered autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity. However, the association among warm-water footbath, menstrual pain and ANS was rarely investigated previously. The randomised controlled trial enrolling 68 college students with dysmenorrhoea found warm-water footbath improved ANS activity and reduced pain severity. Furthermore, the changes in heart rate variability positively correlated with pain severity improvement. A warm-water footbath for 20 minutes on menstruation days 1 and 2 is beneficial in improving pain among college students with dysmenorrhoea.
热水足浴对改善痛经的效果鲜有研究。本研究旨在探讨热水足浴是否能有效减轻痛经疼痛并改善自主神经系统 (ANS) 活动。这项随机对照试验已在 ClinicalTrials.gov 注册。（NCT04071028）我们于 2013 年 12 月 1 日至 2014 年 6 月 30 日招募了来自台湾北部的有痛经的大学生，并将其随机分为足浴组（n=35，中位年龄 19 岁）和对照组（n=33，18 岁）。使用疼痛视觉模拟评分和简短 McGill 疼痛问卷进行疼痛评估，同时测量心率变异性（HRV）以评估 ANS 功能。干预后，与对照组相比，足浴组的 ANS 活动显著改善，疼痛严重程度降低。此外，HRV 的变化与疼痛严重程度的改善呈正相关。总之，热水足浴有益于改善有痛经的大学生的疼痛严重程度。
