Application of aromatherapy massage in postpartum depression and effect evaluation

Abstract

[Objective] To understand the application effect of aromatherapy massage by using plant extracts and its impact factors.[Methods] 94 pregnancy women whose Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale(EPDS)assessment score ranged between 10～20 points were selected in this study.They were implemented the aromatherapy massage 24 hours after delivery.49 cases treated with implementa-tion of the aromatherapy massage from maternal to puerperium were set as the observation group,45 cases whose aromatherapy massage was interrupted by various reasons after discharge were named as the control group.The EPDS score and growth and development indexes were compared 7,14,28,42 days postpartum.[Results] The EPDS scores in the observation group were lower than those in the control group 28,42 days postpartum.The growth and development indexes if infants were better than in the control group.Family-related factor was a direct impact on continuous implementation of aromatherapy massage postpartum.[Conclusions] Continuous implementation of aromatherapy massage by using plant extracts in the whole puerperium combined with psychological counseling by the massage nurses can regulate the maternal emotion,alleviate depression of these women.The puerpera with higher EPDS scores can't take good care of the infants,and can affect the development of the infants. Key words: Postpartum depression; Aromatherapy massage; Edinburgh postnatal depression scale; Effect; Impact factors