Effectiveness Not Established

Healing Touch

for Sleep-Wake Disturbances

Healing touch is an energy-based therapeutic approach to healing (Poznanski-Hutchinson, 1999; Mentgen, 1996). Healing touch uses touch to influence the body’s energy system, thus affecting physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health and healing (Mentgen, 2001). The goal of healing touch is to restore balance in clients’ energy systems, thereby placing clients in a position to self-heal.

Mentgen, J. (1996). The clinical practice of healing touch. Imprint, 43, 33–36.

Mentgen, J. (2001). Healing touch. Holistic Nursing Care, 36, 143–157.

Poznanski-Hutchinson, C. (1999). Healing touch: An energetic approach. American Journal of Nursing, 99, 43–48.

Research Evidence Summaries

Tabatabaee, A., Tafreshi, M.Z., Rassouli, M., Aledavood, S.A., AlaviMajd, H., & Farahmand, S.K. (2016). Effect of therapeutic touch on pain related parameters in patients with cancer: A randomized clinical trial. Materia Socio-Medica, 28, 220–223.

Study Purpose

The purpose was to evaluate the effects of therapeutic touch (TT) for pain management.

Intervention Characteristics/Basic Study Process

Patients were randomly assigned to TT, placebo, or control groups. TT was provided by a trained therapist in a private area every three days for seven sessions. In the placebo group, hands were placed around the body in a sham procedure. The control group received usual care. TT and sham procedure took 10-15 minutes.

Sample Characteristics

  • N = 90   
  • AGE: Mean 54.51 years
  • MALES: 100%  
  • KEY DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS: Disease type not stated
  • OTHER KEY SAMPLE CHARACTERISTICS: All had chronic pain and had been treated for cancer for at least one year.

Setting

  • SITE: Single site   
  • SETTING TYPE: Not specified    
  • LOCATION: Iran

Phase of Care and Clinical Applications

PHASE OF CARE: Transition phase after active treatment

Study Design

Three-group sham-controlled randomized clinical trial

Measurement Instruments/Methods

Brief Pain Inventory

Results

Only pain interference was reported. No information was provided on pain severity. After the first TT session, there were no significant differences between groups in pain interference results. After session 7, those in the TT group showed lower pain interference for activity (p = 0.001), mood (p = 0.001), walking ability (p = 0.001), relationships with other people (p = 0.001), and sleep (p = 0.001).

Conclusions

TT may be helpful for pain management in patients with cancer and managing sleep disturbance related to pain.

Limitations

  • Small sample (< 100)
  • Risk of bias (no blinding)
  • Risk of bias (no appropriate attentional control condition)
  • Unintended interventions or applicable interventions not described that would influence results
  • Measurement or methods not well described
  • Intervention expensive, impractical, or training needs
  • Other limitations/explanation: Timing of measurement not reported. No information about baseline pain, use of analgesics, etc., is provided. No information on diagnosis and type of pain. Provision of TT requires specific training.

Nursing Implications

TT is a low-risk intervention that may be beneficial for some patients in managing pain and reducing the impact of pain on sleep. This study had multiple limitations. Further well-designed research in effectiveness of TT for varied types of pain is needed.

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Weze, C., Leathard, H. L., Grange, J., Tiplady, P., & Stevens, G. (2004). Evaluation of healing by gentle touch in 35 clients with cancer. European Journal of Oncology Nursing, 8, 40–49.

Intervention Characteristics/Basic Study Process

The healing touch method was a noninvasive, noncondition-specific method in which hands were placed on various parts of the body for about 40 minutes; particular attention was given to areas of pain or discomfort. Four one-hour sessions were conducted over four to six weeks (or withdrawn).

Sample Characteristics

  • The sample was comprised of 35 patients (11 men and 23 women reported).
  • Mean age was 57 years (range 24–80).
  • About half of the sample had cancer for less than a year, and about half had cancer for one to five years.
  • Cancer types were mixed, but 40% of patients had advanced disease.

Setting

  • Outpatient center for complementary care
  • Eskdale, Cumbria

Phase of Care and Clinical Applications

Patients were undergoing the active treatment and long-term follow-up phases of care.

Study Design

The study used a one-group, pre- and posttest feasibility design.

Measurement Instruments/Methods

  • EuroQol EQ-5D
  • Visual analog scales:  Sleep disturbance was scored from 0 to 3 (sleeping too much), 4 to 7 (sleeping well), and 8 to 10 (sleeping poorly).

Results

A statistically significant improvement was found from pre- to posttest for sleep disturbance.

Limitations

  • The study had a small sample size.
  • Healthcare providers must be trained in healing touch.
  • Participants’ baseline scores served as their own controls.
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