ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Touch therapy is used in the control of physical and psychological symptoms in cancer patients. However, its effectiveness has not been well studied. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of touch therapy intervention on symptoms and psychosocial factors for patients with cancer. METHOD: Four electronic databases were used to identify all experimental studies that examine the effects of touch therapy on symptoms and psychosocial factors for patients with cancer. The standardized mean differences between groups in levels of symptoms and psychosocial factors for postintervention were computed for each study. RESULT: The pooled results suggest that touch therapy intervention effectively reduces pain, fatigue, anxiety, and negative mood among patients with cancer postintervention. However, touch therapy intervention did not affect the quality of life and stress. CONCLUSION: A significant effect of touch therapy was the reduction of physical and psychological symptoms in cancer patients. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Touch therapy could be safely integrated into the clinical practice of patients with cancer.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: The current study aimed to analyze the effects of motivational interviewing (MI) on metabolic and psychosocial variables among individuals with diabetes. METHODS: Four databases were searched between 2000 and 2021 years. Randomized controlled studies were included. The standardized mean differences were determined. The heterogeneity was analyzed using the I2 test. The methodological quality was evaluated independently by three researchers. RESULTS: This meta-analysis included 16 studies. Glycated hemoglobin, postprandial plasma glucose (PG), systolic blood pressure (BP) significantly decreased after MI. There are no significant effects of MI on fasting PG, body mass index, diastolic BP, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, low-density lipoprotein and triglyceride. MI had an overall significant impact on depression, emotional distress, and self-efficacy. Only four studies had 7 points based on the Modified Jadad Scale. The Egger's test showed no evidence of publication bias. CONCLUSION: MI effectively reduced glycated hemoglobin, postprandial plasma glucose, systolic blood pressure, depressive symptoms, emotional distress, and increased self-efficacy. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: This meta-analysis showed that MI was effective at improving metabolic control and psychosocial variables. MI should be considered a complementary treatment for people diagnosed with diabetes. Future studies should be structured as long-term studies with higher methodological quality.
