The Effects of Hand Massage Using Aroma Essential Oil and Music Therapy on Anxiety and Sleeping for Elderly Women in the Sanatorium

This study investigated the caring effect of hand massage using aroma essential oil and music therapy on an anxiety and sleeping for the 72 elderly comprising of groups I (24 elderly) and II (25) and a control group (23) living in the sanatorium. The group I was given with hand massage using aroma essential oil and music therapy at the same time twice a week, for 4 weeks, while group II was with only hand massage using aroma essential oil and the control group was with none. Despite no difference between beforehand between group I and II, the average anxiety scores (AAS) of the group I has statistically significantly reduced; AAS of the group I has reduced by 4 from beforehand 53 to afterward 49, while group II by 1 from 52 to 51. However, there was no significant difference in improvement in sleeping among groups. This study demonstrates that non-medicated, hand massage using aroma essential oil coupled with music therapy can be effective for relieving the anxiety of the elderly living in the sanatorium.