Effect of the Benson Relaxation Technique on Clinical Outcomes of Oncology Patients Admitted to Intensive Care Units

The benson Relaxation Technique (BRT), developed by Dr. Herbert Benson, is a method aimed at reducing stress and anxiety through a series of simple steps designed to elicit the "Relaxation Response." This response is a physiological state that counteracts the harmful effects of stress, characterized by decreased heart rate, lower metabolism, and reduced breathing rate

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Oncology Patients; Relaxation Program
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: benson relaxation; Behavioral: Routine care in unit

Detailed Description

The benson relaxation consisted of the following steps: (1) Sitting or lying down quietly in a comfortable position; (2) Closing eyes; (3) Deeply relaxing all muscles, beginning at the feet and progressing up to the face. Keeping them relaxed; (4) Breathing through the nose. Becoming aware of breathing. Focus on a word, phrase, a short prayer, or only breathing. (6) Continuing for 15 minutes. When finished, sit quietly for several minutes, at first with eyes closed and later with eyes opened. Do not stand up for a few minutes.

According to the agreement, the patients in both groups were required to perform the Benson relaxation technique regularly twice daily (morning and evening) for three days in a row. Each session lasted 15 minutes

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Egypt
  • Damanhūr, Egypt
    • Faculty of Nursing

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adult patients aged 18-60 years
• diagnosed with cancer
• alert and able to communicate.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients who refused to participate in the study
• Patients with cognitive impairment
• Patient who unable to communicate

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: The benson group; Patients who received the intervention	Behavioral: benson relaxation; The benson relaxation consisted of the following steps: (1) Sitting or lying down quietly in a comfortable position; (2) Closing eyes; (3) Deeply relaxing all muscles, beginning at the feet and progressing up to the face. Keeping them relaxed; (4) Breathing through the nose. (5) Maintaining a passive attitude and permitting relaxation to occur at its own pace; (6) Continuing for 15 minutes. When finished, sit quietly for several minutes, at first with eyes closed and later with eyes opened. Do not stand up for a few minutes. According to the agreement, the patients in both groups were required to perform the Benson relaxation technique regularly twice daily (morning and evening) for seven days in a row. Each session lasted 15 minutes
Placebo Comparator: Control group; Patients who receive routine care in units	Behavioral: Routine care in unit; The routine care include in the unit will be delivered to control group

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Heart rate	measure heart rate per min	daily for three days
Blood pressure	measure blood pressure in mmHg	daily for three days
Respiratory rate	measure respiratory rate per min	daily for three days
The Rhodes Index of Nausea, Vomiting, and Retching	It is a self-report tool designed to assess the severity and impact of nausea, vomiting, and retching on patients' 5-point categorical scales, the interval of each category was (maximum possible score/4-1 ) with the score being zero in the "none" category. For example, if the maximum possible score was 32, then, none: 0, mild: 1-8, moderate: 9-16, severe: 17-24, great: 24-32.	daily for three days
The Numeric Pain Rating Scale	The patient is asked to make three pain ratings, corresponding to current, best and worst pain experienced over the past 24 hours. scale is the most widely used single-dimension assessment scale.The total score is divided into 4 main categories: zero, which indicates no pain; 1-3 grades, which indicates mild pain; 4-6 grades, which indicate moderate pain; and 7-10 grades, which indicate severe pain	daily for three days
Insomnia Severity Index Scale	The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) is a widely used self-report questionnaire designed to assess the severity of insomnia. It consists of seven questions, each rated on a scale that reflects the severity of sleep problems experienced over the last two weeks. The total score is calculated by summing the responses to all seven items, with potential scores ranging from 0 to 28. Total Score Calculation 0-7: No clinically significant insomnia 8-14: Subthreshold insomnia 15-21: Clinical insomnia (moderate severity) 22-28: Clinical insomnia (severe)	daily for three days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Icu length	How long patient stay in ICU	an average three months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Damanhour University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): November 1, 2024
• Primary Completion (Actual): August 1, 2025
• Study Completion (Actual): August 1, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 19, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 24, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): October 28, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 6, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 1, 2025
• Last Verified: June 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Clinical outcomes; benson relaxation; Oncology/ cancer patients
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Neoplasms
• Other Study ID Numbers: Damanhour university (Faculty of pharmacy)

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No