Effects of Aromatherapy with Jasmine Essential Oil on the Sleep Quality of Hemodialysis Patients

Introduction: Poor sleep quality is a common problem among hemodialysis patients. Aromatherapy has few complications and is an effective approach to this problem. Objective: The present study aimed to assess the effect of aromatherapy with jasmine essential oil on the sleep quality of hemodialysis patients. Materials and Methods: This double-group clinical trial was conducted on 54 patients undergoing hemodialysis with poor sleep quality living in Sabzevar City, Iran, in 2021. The patients were divided into the intervention and control groups (21 in the intervention and 25 in control group) using the random allocation method with permuted blocks. The study data were collected using a demographic questionnaire and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), completed at the beginning of the study. The patients in the intervention group inhaled a piece of cotton smeared with jasmine essential oil every night for one month. The concentration of jasmine extract was 70%, the duration of inhalation was about 7 hours, and the distance between the place of cotton soaked in jasmine and the patient’s nose was 30 cm. Afterwards, the PSQI was completed again. Data analysis was performed using descriptive indices, the Chi-square test, the independent t-test, paired t-test, the Fisher exact test, and univariate analysis of variance. P Values less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: The patients were 18-70 years old. Comparing demographic data between the two study groups showed no significant difference in terms of age, gender, marital status, employment status, and education. In the intervention group, the Mean±SD of sleep quality decreased from 9.90±2.70 to 6.16±2.15 after aroma therapy. In the control group, the score decreased from 8.48±2.98 to 8.16±2.68. The analysis of variance for overall sleep quality after the intervention by modulating the effect of overall sleep quality before the intervention showed a significant difference among the groups in terms of overall sleep quality after the intervention (the effect size=0.24, P=0.001). Conclusion: According to the results, aromatherapy with jasmine essential oil could enhance the sleep quality and sleep duration of the patient’s undergoing hemodialysis.