• Fatemeh Mahdavipour, Zahra Rahemi, Zohreh Sadat, and Ajorpaz Neda Mirbagher NM Autoimmune Diseases Research Center, Department of Nursing and Midwifery, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran. Electronic addres.
• Trauma Nursing Research Center, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran.
• Complement Ther Med. 2019 Dec 1; 47: 102195.

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to determine the effects of foot reflexology on depression during menopause.DesignRandomized controlled clinical trial.SettingGynecology outpatient clinic.InterventionsWe enrolled 90 menopausal women with depression. Participants were assigned to the intervention (n = 45) and control (n = 45) groups by block randomization. Participants in the intervention group received 15 min of foot reflexology on each foot for a total of 30 min in evenings, twice a week for six weeks. Participants in the control group received only the routine care for menopause patients.Main Outcome MeasuresThe Beck Depression questionnaire was completed by all participants at the beginning of the trial and the end of the intervention and two months after completion of the intervention.ResultsA total of 121 patients were assessed for eligibility to participate in the study. One-hundred patients met the criteria to participate, and 90 participants-45 participants in each group-completed the study. In the intervention group, the mean scores of depression before, immediately after, and two months after the study were 26.97 ± 4.47 (95% CI = 25.3-28.3), 22.55 ± 5.18 (95% CI = 20.9-24.1), and 21.20 ± 5.74 (95% CI = 19.4-22.9), respectively. In the control group, these scores were 26.15 ± 5.01 (95% CI = 24.6-27.6), 26.22 ± 5.14 (95% CI = 24.7-27.7), and 26.66 ± 3.87 (95%CI = 25.5-27.8), respectively. Using Repeated Measures ANOVA, the comparison of the mean scores of depression in the two groups indicated that the scores were decreased over time.ConclusionThe findings indicated that the foot reflexology technique can be effective for reducing women's depression during menopause. However, considering the study's limitations, including a small sample size and no intervention in the control group, more studies are needed to verify the findings.Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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