Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of Ankle Pump Exercise on lower limb edema and pain of operating room nurses. Methods: This research was arranged on the basis of the nonequivalent control group pre-post test design. The participants were 41 nurses working in the operating room in `S` hospital in Seoul and `H` hospital in Guri City, Korea. Data were collected from August 20 to September 30, 2012. Edema of the lower extremities was measured in terms of the girths of ankles and calves. Pain of the lower extremities was measured in terms of VAS (Visual Analogue Scale) for pain. The data were analyzed by frequency, percentage mean, and standard deviation, using the chi2(p) and t-test, repeated measures ANOVA, and a paired t-test. The SPSS Win 20.0 program was used for analysis. Results: Hypothesis 1 - There are significant differences in lower extremity edema between the experimental group and the control group. - was partially supported. Hypothesis 2 - There are significant differences in lower extremity pain between the experimental group and the control group. - was supported. Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrate positive practical effects of the Ankle Pump Exercise in reducing the circumference of both ankles, reducing the circumferential edema of both calves, and alleviating the pain of nurses in the operating room. Based on these findings, application of the Ankle Pump Exercise can be considered as an effective method to prevent nurses` health problems in the lower extremities that can be induced by their work during surgical operations.
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