The effect of lavender aromatherapy on anxiety and depression in patients with acute coronary syndrome

Cardiac intensive care unit patients are at risk for mental disorders such as anxiety and depression. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of lavender aromatherapy on anxiety and depression in patients with acute coronary syndrome admitted to the cardiac intensive care units. Subjects and

This randomized clinical trial was conducted on patients with acute coronary syndrome admitted to the cardiac intensive care of Namazi Hospital in Shiraz in 2014. A total of 110 patients were randomly assigned to either the Aroma or the placebo group. Before and after the intervention, the anxiety and depression levels of the patients were measured. Data analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS version 16.

Patients receiving the aroma showed a significant reduction in depression (P-value = 0.01) and anxiety (P-value = 0.099) compared to placebo group. Also, the effect of size on depression and anxiety was 0.52 and 0.54 respectively, which indicates a high amount of effect.

Based on the findings, aromatherapy with lavender can reduce anxiety and depression in patients with acute coronary syndrome.