The effect of abdominal massage applied after surgery on gastrointestinal symptoms and comfort level

This randomized controlled experimental study was conducted to determine the effect of abdominal massage on gastrointestinal symptoms and comfort level in patients undergoing abdominal massage after surgical intervention. The study sample consisted of 68 patients who underwent inpatient surgery in the orthopedics and traumatology clinic of a university hospital in Istanbul between September 2022 and September 2023. The data were collected using the "Patient Information Form", "Functional Independence Scale (FIS)", "Bristol Stool Scale", "Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS)" and "General Comfort Scale (GCS)" with patients who did not defecate in the first three days after surgery. Patients in the experimental group received abdominal massage for 15 minutes twice a day for three days starting from the morning of the 4th day. In the control group, laxatives were administered routinely according to the physician's order. No statistical difference was found between the control and experimental groups regarding individual and disease characteristics (p>0.05). There was also no statistically significant difference between the gastrointestinal symptoms and habits of the patients. Although the first mobilization, transition to oral feeding, number of bowel sounds (on days 4, 5, and 6), first gas output on day 2 (experimental n=17, control=12), and first defecation output on day 5 (experimental n=11, control=8) occurred in more patients in the experimental group, no statistical difference was found between both groups. The groups were homogeneous in terms of stool characteristics and functional independence levels. When the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS) scores of the experimental and control groups were compared after surgical intervention, it was seen that the severity of gastrointestinal symptoms decreased in both groups. When the groups were compared in terms of General Comfort Scale (GCS) scores, in addition to the increase in comfort levels in both groups, there was a statistically significant difference between the experimental and control groups in the sub-dimension of overcoming problems, which is considered the highest level of comfort (p<0.05). The sub-dimension of overcoming problems of the GCS was higher in the experimental group. In line with these results obtained from the study, it was determined that abdominal massage application can replace pharmacologic methods and similar effects can be obtained, and at the same time, it increases the level of patients' ability to overcome problems, which is considered the highest level of comfort and the patient can move independently. In this context, abdominal massage application can be recommended for gastrointestinal symptom management and increased comfort after surgical intervention.