Aromatherapy to Reduce Pain and Anxiety During Cervical Colposcopy

Aromatherapy With Lavender Oil to Reduce Pain and Anxiety During Cervical Colposcopy: A Randomized, Controlled Trial

Status

Completed

Phases

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT01214304

Acronym

Lavender Colpo

Enrollment

262

Registered

2010-10-05

Start date

2011-02-28

Completion date

2013-11-30

Last updated

2013-11-25

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Colposcopy

Keywords

Colposcopy

Brief summary

The purpose of this study is to determine whether aromatherapy with lavender oil compared to placebo lowers anxiety levels in women during colposcopy.

Detailed description

Aromatherapy is a modality that might reduce anxiety. Women experience high levels of anxiety and negative emotional responses at all stages of cervical cancer screening. High levels of anxiety before and during colposcopy can be bad. If lavender oil aromatherapy reduces anxiety, then simple use of this modality may improve experiences during colposcopy.

Interventions

OTHEREssential Lavender Oil

Aromatherapy with essential lavender oil will be initiated 5 minutes prior to the procedure and continued until the conclusion of the procedure (patient dressed and ready to leave the room). The essential lavender oil and will be administered by fan diffuser.

OTHERLavender Scent

Aromatherapy with a fake lavender scent (placebo) will be initiated 5 minutes prior to the procedure and continued until the conclusion of the procedure (patient dressed and ready to leave the room). The fake lavender scent will be administered by fan diffuser.

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

PARALLEL

Primary purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

FEMALE

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

* Tricare Insurance Beneficiary (military insurance) receiving care at Nellis AFB * All women at least 18 yrs of age undergoing colposcopy who have not previously participated in this protocol.

Exclusion criteria

* age \<18 years * pregnancy * breastfeeding * asthma * poor sense of smell * allergy to one of the essential oils * consumption of any analgesic * short-term anxiolytic (i.e. benzodiazepines) or chronic anxiolytic medications (i.e. SSRI)

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Pain Level	8 months	Patients will be measured on an 11 point scale from 0 to 10 on their pain Level.

Secondary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Anxiety Level	8 months	Patients will be measured on an 11 point scale from 0 to 10 on their anxiety level.

Countries

United States

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026