Effect of Abdominal Massage and Bed Exercise on Palliative Care Patients

March 30, 2026 updated by: SERAP GÜNGÖR ÜNAL, Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University

Abdominal Massage Group Bed Exercise Group Control Group

Palliative care is a special type of medical care that focuses on providing support and improving the quality of life for individuals facing life-threatening illnesses. Nursing care for patients receiving enteral nutrition includes interventions that facilitate nutrition, increase patient comfort, and reduce complications. This study will be conducted as a randomized controlled experimental study to evaluate the effects of abdominal massage and in-bed exercise on gastrointestinal complications and patient comfort in palliative care patients.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Enrolling by invitation

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Abdominal Massage Group Application Steps

  • In this group, patients will receive abdominal massage by the researcher in addition to routine care, with privacy provided.
  • Abdominal massage will be applied to the patient by the researcher every morning between 07-08 and 19-20 for 3 days before enteral feeding, and measurements will be recorded 24 hours after the application at 07-08 in the morning. The timing and frequency of massage application were decided according to studies in the literature and expert opinions.
  • Before abdominal massage, the patient will be placed in a supine position and will remain in the same position throughout the procedure.
  • For abdominal massage, superficial effleurage, deep effleurage, petrissage, vibration, and superficial effleurage maneuvers will be applied to the patient for approximately 15 minutes, respectively.
  • After the application, the patient will be placed in a semi-fawler position. In-bed Exercise Group Application Steps In-bed exercise application will be applied to the patient by the researcher every morning between 07-08 for 3 days before enteral feeding and measurements will be recorded 24 hours after the application.

Before the in-bed exercise application, the patient will be placed in a supine position and will be kept in the same position throughout the procedure.

For the in-bed exercise application to the patient; opening and closing the wrist and fingers inwards and outwards, opening and closing the elbow and arm, turning the arm right and left at the level of the head, ankle up and down and right and left, bending and releasing the hip and knee, opening and closing the leg sideways, pushing and pulling the hip and knee 90 ͦ, and leg movements in the up and down direction will be applied for approximately 15 minutes.

After the application, the patient will be placed in the semi-fawler position. Control Group Application Steps

  • Standard nursing care will be applied to the patient. Abdominal massage group
  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, abdominal massage and demographic data before feeding and other information about the patients will be filled in by the researcher from the patient record file, "Patient Information Form" and "Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Face Pain Scale", 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' before the intervention and feeding (1st Interview).
  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, abdominal massage will be applied to the patient by the researcher for approximately 15 minutes before feeding (1st Interview).
  • In the second interview, between 07-08 in the morning, abdominal massage and 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' will be filled in before feeding and abdominal massage will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes (2nd Interview).
  • In the third interview, between 07-08 in the morning, abdominal massage and 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' will be filled in before feeding and abdominal massage will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes (3rd Interview).
  • In the fourth interview, between 07-08 in the morning, data will be collected with the "Comfort Behavior Checklist", "Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale" and 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' before feeding (4th Interview).

In-bed exercise group

  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, demographic data and other information about the patients will be collected from the patient record file before starting the in-bed exercise and feeding, and the "Patient Information Form" and "Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale", 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled out by the researcher before the intervention and feeding (1st Interview).
  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, in-bed exercises will be applied by the researcher for approximately 15 minutes before feeding (1st Interview).
  • In the second interview, between 07-08 in the morning, the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled out before the in-bed exercise and feeding and the in-bed exercises will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes (2nd Interview).
  • In the third interview, between 07-08 in the morning, the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled in before bed exercise and feeding, and the in-bed exercises will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes (3rd Interview).
  • In the fourth interview, between 07-08 in the morning, the Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale and 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be collected before feeding (4th Interview).

Control group

  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, demographic data and other information about the patients will be collected from the patient record file by the researcher before feeding, the "Patient Information Form" and the "Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale", 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled in before the intervention and feeding (1st Interview).
  • In the second interview, between 07-08 in the morning, the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled in before feeding (2nd Interview).
  • In the third meeting, between 07-08 am, the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled out before feeding (3rd Meeting). - In the fourth meeting, between 07-08 am, data will be collected with the "Comfort Behavior Checklist", Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale and 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' before feeding (4th Meeting).

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
105

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Kahramanmaraş
      • Kahramanmaraş, Kahramanmaraş, Turkey (Türkiye), 46000
        • Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam Unıversity

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Being over 18 years of age,
  • Patients receiving inpatient treatment and care in the palliative care unit,
  • Patients who started enteral feeding at least 24 hours ago
  • Patients without wounds in the extremity and abdominal region
  • Patients without intestinal obstruction
  • Patients who have not received abdominal radiotherapy and have not undergone abdominal surgery in the last six weeks
  • Patients with a Glasgow Coma Score (GCS) >3
  • Patients who have no restrictions on abdominal massage
  • Patients whose consent has been obtained from their relatives will be included.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients whose enteral feeding was stopped during the study
  • Patients who showed signs of infection due to Ventilator-associated Pneumonia or other infections during or before the study will not be included.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: control group
- Standard nursing care will be applied to the patient.
Other: control group

In the first interview, between 07-08 am, demographic data and other patient information will be collected from the patient record file before feeding, using the "Patient Information Form" and the "Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale", 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form', before the intervention and feeding (Interview 1).

  • In the second interview, between 07-08 am, the 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' will be filled out before feeding (Interview 2).
  • In the third interview, between 07-08 am, the 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' will be filled out before feeding (Interview 3).
  • In the fourth interview, between 07-08 in the morning, data will be collected with the "Comfort Behavior Checklist", Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale and 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' before feeding (Interview 4).
Experimental: abdominal massage group
  • In this group, patients will receive abdominal massage by the researcher, in addition to routine care, with privacy.
  • Abdominal massage will be applied to the patient by the researcher every morning between 07-08 and 19-20 for 3 days before enteral feeding, and measurements will be recorded 24 hours after the application at 07-08 in the morning. The timing and frequency of massage application were decided according to studies in the literature and expert opinions (Uysal et al., 2012; Wang et al., 2022; Zhang et al., 2023).
  • Before abdominal massage, the patient will be placed in a supine position and will remain in the same position throughout the procedure.
  • For abdominal massage, superficial effleurage, deep effleurage, petrissage, vibration and superficial effleurage maneuvers will be applied to the patient for approximately 15 minutes, respectively.
  • After the application, the patient will be placed in a semi-fawler position
Other: abdominal massage
  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, demographic data and other information about the patients will be collected from the patient record file before the intervention and feeding by the researcher using the "Patient Information Form" and "Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Facial Pain Scale", 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' (Interview 1).
  • In the first interview, between 07-08 in the morning, abdominal massage will be applied to the patient by the researcher for approximately 15 minutes before feeding (Interview 1).
  • In the second interview, between 07-08 in the morning, abdominal massage will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes by filling out the 'Enteral Feeding Monitoring Form' before feeding and abdominal massage will be repeated (Interview 2).
  • In the third interview, between 07-08 in the morning, the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled out before abdominal massage and feeding, and the abdominal massage will be repeated for approxim
Experimental: bed exercise group

The in-bed exercise application will be applied to the patient by the researcher every morning between 07-08 for 3 days before enteral feeding and the measurements will be recorded 24 hours after the application.

The patient will be placed in a supine position before the in-bed exercise application and will be kept in the same position throughout the procedure.

For the in-bed exercise application, the following will be applied to the patient, in order; opening and closing the wrist and fingers inwards and outwards, opening and closing the elbow and arm, turning the arm right and left at the level of the head, ankle up and down and right and left, bending and releasing the hip and knee, opening and closing the leg sideways, pushing and pulling the hip and knee 90°, and leg up and down movements will be applied for approximately 15 minutes.

After the application, the patient will be placed in the semi-fawler position.
Other: bed exercise group

In the first interview, demographic data and other patient information will be collected from the patient record file between 07-08 in the morning before starting bed exercise and nutrition, and the "Patient Information Form" and "Comfort Behavior Checklist, Wong-Baker Face Pain Scale", 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' will be filled in by the researcher before the intervention and nutrition (1st Interview).

  • In the first interview, bed exercises will be applied by the researcher for approximately 15 minutes before nutrition between 07-08 in the morning (1st Interview).
  • In the second interview, bed exercises will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes after filling out the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' before bed exercise and nutrition between 07-08 in the morning (2nd Interview).
  • In the third interview, bed exercises will be repeated for approximately 15 minutes after filling out the 'Enteral Nutrition Monitoring Form' before bed exercise and nutrition between 07-08 in

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
The effect of abdominal massage on gastrointestinal complications
Time Frame: 96 hours
Abdominal massage was repeated for 3 days, and , diarrhea status and number, constipation status, vomiting status and number, nausea status, abdominal distension, and defecation number measurement were recorded before each abdominal massage.
96 hours

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Effects of in-bed exercise on gastrointestinal complications
Time Frame: 96 hours
Effects of in-bed exercise was repeated for 3 days, and, diarrhea status and number, constipation status, vomiting status and number, nausea status, abdominal distension, and defecation number measurement were recorded before each in bed exercise.
96 hours

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
The effect of abdominal massage on patient comfort
Time Frame: 96 hours
The Comfort Behavior Checklist (CBC) consists of 30 behavioral indicators, pain, and comfort scores. The minimum score is 25, and the maximum is 100. Higher scores indicate higher comfort levels. Scoring was done performed before and after the abdominal massage.
96 hours
The effect of in-bed exercise on patient comfort
Time Frame: 96 hours
The Comfort Behavior Checklist (CBC) consists of 30 behavioral indicators, pain, and comfort scores. The minimum score is 25, and the maximum score is 100. Higher scores indicate higher levels of comfort. Scoring was done before and after starting in-bed exercises.
96 hours

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
March 1, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
May 25, 2025

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
March 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
May 25, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 12, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 15, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
March 31, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 30, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
June 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • Abdominal massage

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Gastrointestinal Complication

Clinical Trials on control group

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings