The efficiency of acupressure practice on managing the acute nausea-vomiting symptoms developing due to chemotherapy in pediatric oncology patients

ABSTRACT Objective: This study is carried out to evaluate and compare the efficiency of acupressure practice applied with pressure or sea-band and their placebo on managing the acute nausea-vomiting symptoms developing due to chemotherapy in pediatric oncology patients. Method: The study carried out triple-blind, randomized controlled experimental method was conducted in Pediatric Oncology Clinic of the Akdeniz University Hospital in March 2017-February 2018. The sample of the study consisted of 44 children, receiving high and medium degree of emetogenic chemotherapy in the age group of 5-18. One of the 2 procedure groups randomized with sealed envelope was applied acupressure with pressure to the P-6 point on the wrist of the child by the researcher in the first application, the other is applied with sea-band, and it was followed for 24 hours. Acupressure application was performed on both wrists for 2 minutes each with pressure, and 15 minutes each with sea-band. In the next chemotherapy treatment, a placebo of the first procedure (placebo pressure/placebo sea-band) was applied to each child, which ensured the control group of their own. Results: It has been determined that 47.73% of the children are diagnosed with acute myeloblastic leukemia, that nausea-vomiting is the symptom they experienced the most (90.48%) due to chemotherapy, and that the 63.3% of the chemotherapy agents they took during the treatments are medication with medium emetogenicity. In pressure and sea-band groups, the number and severity of nausea-vomiting have been detected to be lower at a statistically significant degree according to their own placebos (p<0.05). It has been found out that the number and severityof nausea averages are the lowest in the group applied with pressure, while the number and severity of vomiting averages are the lowest in the pressure and sea-band group. Additional antiemetic drug administration is more common in the placebo groups. This difference between the groups has been found to be statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusion: It has been found out that the application of acupressure (pressure or sea-band) reduced the number and severity of nausea-vomiting and the pressure application is more efficient compared to sea-band. Key Words: child, cancer, acupressure, nausea-vomiting, nurse