Vol. 20 No. 1 (2021)
Original Articles

The therapeutic use of essential oils in the care of cancer patients in chemotherapy: A systematic review

Bruno B. Monteiro-Oliveira
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Fisiopatologia Clínica e Experimental, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcântara Gomes, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Bio
Ana Carolina Coelho-Oliveira
Programa de Pós-Graduação em Fisiopatologia Clínica e Experimental, Instituto de Biologia Roberto Alcântara Gomes, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Bio
Tatiane S. A. David
Faculdade Bezerra de Araújo. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Bio
Adriana T. Brito
Faculdade Bezerra de Araújo. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Bio
Ana Carla A. Cruz
Pós-Graduação em Práticas Integrativas e Complementares, Faculdade Berreza de Araújo. Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil.
Bio
Genice G. Souza
Bio
Laisa L. Paineiras-Domingos
Departamento de Fisioterapia, Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal da Bahia. Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
Bio

Published 2021-07-03

Keywords

  • Aromatherapy,
  • Cancer,
  • Chemotherapy,
  • Integrative and complementary practices

How to Cite

1.
Bruno B. Monteiro-Oliveira, Ana Carolina Coelho-Oliveira, Tatiane S. A. David, Adriana T. Brito, Ana Carla A. Cruz, Genice G. Souza, Laisa L. Paineiras-Domingos. The therapeutic use of essential oils in the care of cancer patients in chemotherapy: A systematic review. BJHBS [Internet]. 2021 Jul. 3 [cited 2024 Oct. 11];20(1):36-45. Available from: https://bjhbs.hupe.uerj.br/bjhbs/article/view/66

Abstract

Introduction: Chemotherapy is an important therapy in the treatment of cancer. Nausea, vomiting and worsening quality are some adverse effects of chemotherapy. Aromatherapy is an ancient technique that uses essential oils for physical and psychological/emotional improvement and is able to reduce the symptoms of chemotherapy and can be an excellent complementary technique. Objective: The aim of this systematic review was to determine the effects of aromatherapy on the adverse effects of chemotherapy in patients diagnosed with cancer. Methods: A search in three database PubMed, EMBASE and SCOPUS. Five studies that analyzed the use of aromatherapy to evaluate the reduction of the adverse effects of chemotherapy in a cancer patient, published only in English were included. Two reviewers, which independently examined titles and abstracts, identified records through database search and reference screening and irrelevant studies were excluded based in eligibility criteria. Relevant full texts were analyzed for eligibility, and all selected studies were included in this systematic review. Results: Five studies were included in this systematic review. This review suggests that aromatherapy reduces nausea, frequency of vomiting and improves quality of sleep. Conclusion: Aromatherapy is an effective technique to reduce nausea, the frequency of vomiting and improves the quality of sleep of patients diagnosed with cancer and undergoing chemotherapy. However, more randomized clinical trials with a good methodological quality are necessary to confirm the preliminary findings of this systematic review.

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