Scholarlink

Background <p>Port-A-Cath needle insertion in pediatric chemotherapy is often painful and stressing. Distraction is a non-pharmacological method of pain management in invasive procedures in children. The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of playing with stress ball on pain and physiological indicators at port needle insertion in children undergoing chemotherapy.</p> Method <p>A randomized clinical trial was conducted with 60 children aged 3 to 7 years, who were randomly assigned to intervention group (<i>n</i> = 30) and control group (<i>n</i> = 30). Ten minutes before the port needle insertion, baseline physiological indicators were recorded and pain scores were measured by the FLACC and Wong-Baker FACES scales. In the intervention group, children played with a stress ball from ten minutes before and during the procedure, while the control group received routine care only. Physiological indicators and the FLACC score during needle insertion, as well as the Wong-Baker FACES self-reporting score immediately after the procedure, were recorded.</p> Results <p>Adjusted mean FLACC and Wong-Baker FACES pain scores were significantly lower in the intervention group compared to the control group (<i>P</i> = 0.043, F = 4.266; <i>P</i> = 0.031, F = 4.87 respectively). As for the physiological indicators, heart rate and systolic blood pressure during needle insertion were both significantly lower in intervention group (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.001, F = 21.215; <i>P</i> &lt; 0.001, F = 29.252 respectively). But there were no significant difference in diastolic blood pressure and arterial oxygen saturation (<i>P</i> = 0.051, F = 3.983; <i>P</i> = 0.724, F = 0.724 respectively).</p> Conclusion <p>Playing with stress ball can decrease pain and improve heart rate and systolic blood pressure during port needle insertion in children. Pediatric nurses should consider the use of stress ball play as a simple, safe and inexpensive nonpharmacological approach for managing children’s pain during painful procedures, especially port needle insertion.</p> Trial registration number <p>Registration number IRCT20250318065123N1 on May 10, 2025 (<a href="https://www.irct.ir/">https://www.irct.ir/</a>).</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Effect of stress-ball play on pain and physiological responses during port-a-cath needle insertion in children undergoing chemotherapy: a randomized controlled trial

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月24日

查看全文
  • Yeganeh Khaleghi,
  • Neda Ashayeri,
  • Monireh Faghir-Ganji,
  • Fahimeh Sabeti

摘要

Background

Port-A-Cath needle insertion in pediatric chemotherapy is often painful and stressing. Distraction is a non-pharmacological method of pain management in invasive procedures in children. The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of playing with stress ball on pain and physiological indicators at port needle insertion in children undergoing chemotherapy.

Method

A randomized clinical trial was conducted with 60 children aged 3 to 7 years, who were randomly assigned to intervention group (n = 30) and control group (n = 30). Ten minutes before the port needle insertion, baseline physiological indicators were recorded and pain scores were measured by the FLACC and Wong-Baker FACES scales. In the intervention group, children played with a stress ball from ten minutes before and during the procedure, while the control group received routine care only. Physiological indicators and the FLACC score during needle insertion, as well as the Wong-Baker FACES self-reporting score immediately after the procedure, were recorded.

Results

Adjusted mean FLACC and Wong-Baker FACES pain scores were significantly lower in the intervention group compared to the control group (P = 0.043, F = 4.266; P = 0.031, F = 4.87 respectively). As for the physiological indicators, heart rate and systolic blood pressure during needle insertion were both significantly lower in intervention group (P < 0.001, F = 21.215; P < 0.001, F = 29.252 respectively). But there were no significant difference in diastolic blood pressure and arterial oxygen saturation (P = 0.051, F = 3.983; P = 0.724, F = 0.724 respectively).

Conclusion

Playing with stress ball can decrease pain and improve heart rate and systolic blood pressure during port needle insertion in children. Pediatric nurses should consider the use of stress ball play as a simple, safe and inexpensive nonpharmacological approach for managing children’s pain during painful procedures, especially port needle insertion.

Trial registration number

Registration number IRCT20250318065123N1 on May 10, 2025 (https://www.irct.ir/).