The effect of increasing duration of family members' presence on sleep status in patients with acute coronary syndrome in cardiac care unit: A randomized controlled trial.

AIM: To investigate the effect of increasing duration of family members' presence on sleep status in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) admitted to the cardiac care unit. DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. METHODS: Ninety patients with ACS randomly assigned into two groups. No intervention was performed in control group. In the intervention group, the time of family members presence was changed from 1 h per day to 2 h per day from the second to the fourth day. Then, ST Mary's Hospital Sleep Questionnaire was completed by the patients every day during the study. RESULTS: The patients in the intervention group had statistically significantly better sleep status during the course of intervention compared to the control group. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: The increasing duration of family members' presence can improve the sleep quality and quantity of ACS patients.

The effect of video training and intraoperative progress report on the anxiety of family caregivers waiting for relatives undergoing surgery.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the effect of video training and intraoperative progress report on the anxiety of family caregivers awaiting relatives undergoing surgery. Methods: A three-armed randomized controlled design was used. One hundred and two participants were enrolled and randomly assigned to three groups: the video training group (n = 34), the intraoperative progress report group (n = 34), and the control group (n = 34). Interventions were performed when the relatives of the participants were undergoing surgery. The participants in the video training group received video training containing images of the operating room environment and animations related to the patient's surgical procedure, postoperative care, and possible complications from the surgery. In the intraoperative progress report group, information regarding the patient's general condition, the percentage of surgical progress, and the approximate time of the patient's transfer from the operating room were provided. The control group received routine care. A demographic data questionnaire and the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) was used for data collection. Results: It was found a statistically significant decrease in the state anxiety in the video training (p < 0.001) and intraoperative progress report (p < 0.001) group after the intervention when compared to before the intervention. It was found no significant difference among the study groups in terms of the level of state and trait anxiety after the intervention (p > 0.05). Conclusions: This study found that both video training and intraoperative progress report are effective in reducing the state anxiety of family caregivers awaiting relatives undergoing surgery.

Effect of acupressure with valerian oil 2.5% on the quality and quantity of sleep in patients with acute coronary syndrome in a cardiac intensive care unit.

The purpose of this three-group double-blind clinical trial study was to investigate the effect of acupressure ( zhǐ ya) with valerian ( xié cǎo) oil 2.5% on the quality and quantity of sleep in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in a coronary intensive care unit (CCU). This study was conducted on 90 patients with ACS in Mazandaran Heart Center (Sari, Iran) during 2013. The patients were randomly assigned to one of three groups. Patients in the acupressure with valerian oil 2.5% group (i.e., valerian acupressure group) received bilateral acupoint ( xué wèi) massage with two drops of valerian oil for 2 minutes for three nights; including every point this treatment lasted in total 18 minutes. Patients in the acupressure group received massage at the same points with the same technique but without valerian oil. Patients in the control group received massage at points that were 1-1.5 cm from the main points using the same technique and for the same length of time. The quality and quantity of the patients' sleep was measured by the St. Mary's Hospital Sleep Questionnaire (SMHSQ). After the intervention, there was a significant difference between sleep quality and sleep quantity in the patients in the valerian acupressure group and the acupressure group, compared to the control group (p < 0.05). Patients that received acupressure with valerian oil experienced improved sleep quality; however, this difference was not statistically significant in comparison to the acupressure only group. Acupressure at the ear spirit gate ( shén mén), hand Shenmen, glabella ( yìn táng), Wind Pool ( feng chí), and Gushing Spring ( yǒng quán) acupoints can have therapeutic effects and may improve the quality and quantity of sleep in patients with ACS. Using these techniques in combination with herbal medicines such valerian oil can have a greater impact on improving sleep and reducing waking during the night.