Use of lavender and lemongrass aromatherapy to reduce pain and anxiety during labor

Effectiveness of lavender and lemongrass aromatherapy on pain and anxiety in women in labor

Status

Recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

REBEC

Registry ID

RBR-8g4k2gd

Enrollment

Registered

2026-05-04

Start date

2026-03-01

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-06-01

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

Conditions

Labor Pain

Interventions

This is a randomized, controlled, two-arm, triple-blind clinical trial. Experimental group: thirty-five parturients will receive aromatherapy with lavender and lemongrass essential oils, administered

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

Female

Age

18 Years to 40 Years

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: Women aged between eighteen and forty years, regardless of parity; term pregnancy between thirty seven weeks and forty one weeks and six days, with a single, live fetus in cephalic presentation; active labor, defined by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters, confirmed by vaginal examination, and the presence of at least two effective uterine contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds within ten minutes; pain score greater than or equal to four on the Visual Analog Scale VAS and anxiety level greater than or equal to thirty on the "State Trait Anxiety Inventory State" at the pre intervention moment; no language barriers that would prevent understanding of the Portuguese language

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: Presence of obstetric comorbidities or systemic conditions, such as hypertensive disorders, metabolic disorders, hemorrhagic conditions, pulmonary diseases (e.g., rhinitis, asthma), heart diseases, coagulation disorders, autoimmune diseases, among others; prior use of pharmacological analgesia before the intervention (e.g., epidural analgesia, nitrous oxide, scopolamine butylbromide); prior use of anxiolytics or antidepressants, regardless of pharmacological class; presence of olfactory disorders that may interfere with the administration of essential oils; known allergies to essential oils or hypersensitivity reactions occurring during the study

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
It's expected to observe labor pain intensity. Pain intensity will be assessed using the Visual Analog Scale VAS, with scores ranging from zero to ten, where zero indicates no pain, one to three mild pain, four to seven moderate pain, and eight to ten severe pain. The assessment period will begin during the active phase of labor, characterized by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters and the presence of at least two effective contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds, with measurements performed at three time points: before the intervention, twenty minutes after the intervention, and one hour after the intervention;It's expected to observe maternal anxiety during labor. Anxiety will be assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory State, with scores ranging from twenty to eighty points, classified as low anxiety from twenty to thirty nine points, moderate anxiety from forty to fifty nine points, and high anxiety from sixty to eighty points. The assessment period will begin during the active phase of labor, characterized by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters and the presence of at least two effective contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds, with measurements performed at three time points: before the intervention, twenty minutes after the intervention, and one hour after the intervention	—

Measure

Time frame

It's expected to observe labor pain intensity. Pain intensity will be assessed using the Visual Analog Scale VAS, with scores ranging from zero to ten, where zero indicates no pain, one to three mild pain, four to seven moderate pain, and eight to ten severe pain. The assessment period will begin during the active phase of labor, characterized by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters and the presence of at least two effective contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds, with measurements performed at three time points: before the intervention, twenty minutes after the intervention, and one hour after the intervention;It's expected to observe maternal anxiety during labor. Anxiety will be assessed using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory State, with scores ranging from twenty to eighty points, classified as low anxiety from twenty to thirty nine points, moderate anxiety from forty to fifty nine points, and high anxiety from sixty to eighty points. The assessment period will begin during the active phase of labor, characterized by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters and the presence of at least two effective contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds, with measurements performed at three time points: before the intervention, twenty minutes after the intervention, and one hour after the intervention

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Secondary

Measure	Time frame
It's expected to observe labor progression. Labor progression will be assessed using the cervical dilation rate in centimeters per hour. The assessment period will begin during the active phase of labor, characterized by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters and the presence of at least two effective contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds, and will continue until the time of delivery;It's expected to observe maternal satisfaction with the intervention. Satisfaction will be assessed using a structured questionnaire based on a five point Likert scale, where one indicates very dissatisfied, two dissatisfied, three neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, four satisfied, and five very satisfied. The assessment period will occur within twenty four hours after delivery;It's expected to observe adverse reactions to the intervention. Adverse reactions related to the intervention will be monitored throughout the study period using a structured form to record signs and symptoms reported by participants or observed by the research team, including nausea, headache, dizziness, allergic reactions, or any other discomfort. The assessment period will begin at the time of study enrollment and will continue until delivery	—

Measure

Time frame

It's expected to observe labor progression. Labor progression will be assessed using the cervical dilation rate in centimeters per hour. The assessment period will begin during the active phase of labor, characterized by cervical dilation greater than or equal to five centimeters and the presence of at least two effective contractions lasting greater than or equal to forty seconds, and will continue until the time of delivery;It's expected to observe maternal satisfaction with the intervention. Satisfaction will be assessed using a structured questionnaire based on a five point Likert scale, where one indicates very dissatisfied, two dissatisfied, three neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, four satisfied, and five very satisfied. The assessment period will occur within twenty four hours after delivery;It's expected to observe adverse reactions to the intervention. Adverse reactions related to the intervention will be monitored throughout the study period using a structured form to record signs and symptoms reported by participants or observed by the research team, including nausea, headache, dizziness, allergic reactions, or any other discomfort. The assessment period will begin at the time of study enrollment and will continue until delivery

—

Countries

Contacts

Public ContactVictor Hugo Mascarenhas

Escola de Enfermagem da Universidade de São Paulo

victormascarenhas@usp.br+55(11)3061-8920

Outcome results

None listed

Source: REBEC (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Jun 11, 2026