Journal of pediatric oncology nursing : official journal of the Association of Pediatric Oncology Nurses
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J Pediatr Oncol Nurs · Nov 2013
ReviewEffectiveness of integrative modalities for pain and anxiety in children and adolescents with cancer: a systematic review.
Throughout the trajectory of the cancer experience, children and adolescents will likely face pain and anxiety in a variety of circumstances. Integrative therapies may be used either alone or as an adjunct to standard analgesics. Children are often very receptive to integrative therapies such as music, art, guided imagery, massage, therapeutic play, distraction, and other modalities. ⋯ Of these, 25 warranted full-text review. Cohen's d calculations show medium (d = 0.70) to extremely large (8.57) effect sizes indicating that integrative interventions may be very effective for pain and anxiety in children undergoing cancer treatment. Integrative modalities warrant further study with larger sample sizes to better determine their effectiveness in this population.