Effectiveness of aromatherapy on stress, anxiety, fatigue, and sleep quality among frontline hospital nurses: A systematic review and meta-analysis

IF 1.3 4区医学 Q3 INTEGRATIVE & COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE

European Journal of Integrative Medicine Pub Date : 2025-12-01 Epub Date: 2025-11-01 DOI:10.1016/j.eujim.2025.102577

Linfang Xu , Yanan Deng , Lan Zeng , Ruben Martin-Payo , Wei Peng , Chen Qiu , Keqi Chen , Fengying Zhang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Introduction

Nurses experience a range of occupational stressors, including night shifts and excessive workloads. These factors significantly increase the likelihood of nurses developing chronic stress, anxiety, fatigue, and sleep disorders. Although numerous studies have proposed aromatherapy interventions as potential strategies to alleviate these health concerns, the evidence regarding their effectiveness remains inconclusive. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of aromatherapy on stress, anxiety, fatigue, and sleep disorders among nurses, and identify key factors for effective programs.

Methods

We systematically searched six electronic databases, supplemented by manual searches of Google Scholar and reference lists. The search covered the period from the inception of each database up until March 2025. Two researchers independently performed study selection and data extraction. The risk of bias of the included studies was evaluated using the RoB 2.0 tool. The quality of evidence for each outcome was graded using the GRADE framework. A random-effects model was used to perform the meta-analysis. Subgroup analysis was conducted to identify potential moderating variables.

Results

A total of 19 studies were included in this systematic review, 12 of which were RCTs. Meta-analysis results indicated that aromatherapy significantly alleviated stress (SMD= -0.74, 95 % CI [-1.12, -0.35], Z = 3.76, P = 0.0002) and fatigue symptoms (SMD = -0.76, 95 % CI [-1.10, -0.42], P < 0.0001) among nurses. Short-term interventions (≤1 week) produced a larger effect size (SMD =-0.80, 95 % CI [-1.47, -0.14], P = 0.02) than longer-term interventions (>1 week) (SMD= -0.61, 95 % CI [-0.95, -0.26], P = 0.0006), possibly due to olfactory adaptation or metabolic regulation. In contrast, the overall effect on anxiety reduction was not statistically significant (SMD =-0.89, 95 % CI [-2.21, 0.42], P = 0.18), and evidence regarding sleep quality improvement remained inconclusive.

Conclusion

Aromatherapy effectively reduces stress and fatigue in nurses, making it a valuable addition to workplace wellness programs.

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芳香疗法对一线医院护士压力、焦虑、疲劳和睡眠质量的影响：一项系统综述和荟萃分析

护士经历了一系列的职业压力源，包括夜班和过度的工作量。这些因素显著增加了护士出现慢性压力、焦虑、疲劳和睡眠障碍的可能性。尽管许多研究已经提出芳香疗法干预作为缓解这些健康问题的潜在策略，但关于其有效性的证据仍然不确定。本研究旨在评估芳香疗法对护士压力、焦虑、疲劳和睡眠障碍的效果，并找出有效方案的关键因素。方法系统检索6个电子数据库，并辅以人工检索b谷歌Scholar和参考文献目录。搜索涵盖了从每个数据库建立到2025年3月的时期。两位研究者独立进行了研究选择和数据提取。使用RoB 2.0工具评估纳入研究的偏倚风险。使用GRADE框架对每个结果的证据质量进行分级。采用随机效应模型进行meta分析。进行亚组分析以确定潜在的调节变量。结果本系统综述共纳入19项研究，其中12项为随机对照试验。meta分析结果显示，芳香疗法显著缓解了护士的压力（SMD= -0.74, 95% CI [-1.12, -0.35], Z = 3.76, P = 0.0002）和疲劳症状（SMD= -0.76, 95% CI [-1.10, -0.42], P < 0.0001）。短期干预（≤1周）产生的效应量（SMD= -0.80, 95% CI [-1.47, -0.14], P = 0.02）大于长期干预（>；1周）（SMD= -0.61, 95% CI [-0.95, -0.26], P = 0.0006），可能是嗅觉适应或代谢调节所致。相比之下，减少焦虑的总体效果没有统计学意义（SMD =-0.89, 95% CI [-2.21, 0.42], P = 0.18），关于睡眠质量改善的证据仍然没有定论。结论芳香疗法有效地减轻了护士的压力和疲劳，使其成为工作场所健康计划的宝贵补充。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

European Journal of Integrative Medicine INTEGRATIVE & COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE-

CiteScore

4.70

自引率

4.00%

发文量

102

审稿时长

33 days

期刊介绍： The European Journal of Integrative Medicine (EuJIM) considers manuscripts from a wide range of complementary and integrative health care disciplines, with a particular focus on whole systems approaches, public health, self management and traditional medical systems. The journal strives to connect conventional medicine and evidence based complementary medicine. We encourage submissions reporting research with relevance for integrative clinical practice and interprofessional education. EuJIM aims to be of interest to both conventional and integrative audiences, including healthcare practitioners, researchers, health care organisations, educationalists, and all those who seek objective and critical information on integrative medicine. To achieve this aim EuJIM provides an innovative international and interdisciplinary platform linking researchers and clinicians. The journal focuses primarily on original research articles including systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials, other clinical studies, qualitative, observational and epidemiological studies. In addition we welcome short reviews, opinion articles and contributions relating to health services and policy, health economics and psychology.