Effectiveness of Proximal Massage and Palm Fisting in Reducing the Risk of Thrombophlebitis among Intravenous Cannulated Inpatients

Abstract

Background: Thrombophlebitis is the formation of a thrombus in association with an inflammation of vein with blood clot formation inside the vein. Thrombophlebitis is a common complications associated with this affecting between 27% and 70% of all clients receiving intravenous (IV) therapy.

Aim: This study aimed at assessing the effectiveness of proximal massage and palm fisting in reducing the risk of thrombophlebitis among IV cannulated inpatients.

Methodology: A quantitative research approach with true experimental research design was used. Samples were collected by random sampling technique with lottery technique. The data were collected by visual infusion phlebitis (VIP) scale. Collected data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential statistics.

Result: The mean VIP score in the study group is 1.21 ± 0.73, whereas in the control group, the mean VIP score is 2.09 ± 1.23 which shows that the proximal massage and palm fisting reduce the risk of thrombophlebitis. The Chi-square value revealed that the demographic variables of the study group such as age (χ² = 5.68), education (χ² = 4.94), occupation (χ² = 4.67), income (χ² = 21.67), comorbidity (χ² = 4.64), alcohol intake (χ² = 4.42), and smoking history (χ² = 4.42) are highly associated with proximal massage and palm fisting in reducing the risk of thrombophlebitis. The obtained t-test value is −1.648 which is significant at 0.05 level.

Conclusion: This study concludes that proximal massage and palm fisting are effective in preventing the risk of thrombophlebitis among IV cannulated inpatients.