The Effect of Aromatherapy Alone or in Combination with Massage on Dysmenorrhea: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Abstract Objective The aim of the present systematic review meta-analysis is to assess the effect of olfactory stimulation on reducing dysmenorrhea. Methods Systematic search was conducted in several databases, such as PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane, and Scopus, to identify relevant research up to October 26, 2019. The identified studies were evaluated based on a modified Jadad scale. The intervention involves aromatherapy alone or in combination with essential oils. There was no restriction for the control group such as a placebo group or other common treatments. The Comprehensive Meta-Analysis Version 2 (Bio stat, Englewood, NJ, USA) was used for meta-analysis. Cochran’s Q and I2 tests were utilized. Results The findings of our meta-analysis, which contained 13 trials (15 data), showed that dysmenorrhea decreased significantly in the group receiving aromatherapy with herbal compared with the control group (standardized mean difference [SMD] =-0.795; 95% confidence interval [CI]: -0.922 to- 0.667; 17 trials O摘要 目的 本项系统综述与元分析（meta-analysis）旨在评估嗅觉刺激对缓解痛经的作用效果。方法 系统检索了PubMed、Web of Science、Cochrane、Scopus等多个数据库，以识别截至2019年10月26日的相关研究。基于改良Jadad量表对纳入的研究进行质量评价。干预措施包括单纯芳香疗法或联合精油疗法。对照组未设特定限制，可采用安慰剂组或其他常规治疗方案。采用Comprehensive Meta-Analysis 2.0版本（美国新泽西州恩格尔伍德市Bio stat公司）开展元分析，并使用Cochran Q检验与I²检验进行异质性分析。结果 本项元分析共纳入13项试验（15组数据），结果显示，与对照组相比，接受草药芳香疗法的受试者痛经症状显著减轻（标准化均数差[standardized mean difference, SMD]=-0.795；95%置信区间[confidence interval, CI]：-0.922至-0.667；共17项试验