Effect of Breathing Exercise on Respiratory Efficiency and Pain Intensity among Children Receiving Chemotherapy

Abstract

Breathing exercises can be used to strengthen respiratory muscles, but they can also be used to create energy. It also combats stress as it stimulates the release of epinephrine. Multidisciplinary management may be needed, with a team including social workers, physiotherapists, play therapists, and music therapists. Cancer pain should always be measured using validated pain assessment tools. The aim of the current study is to determine the effect of breathing Exercise on respiratory efficiency and pain intensity among children under chemotherapy.  A convenient sample of 70 children older than 3 years old,   with cancer and treated by chemotherapy; were included in the study. A quasi-experimental research design was used to conduct the study. The study was conducted in the National Cancer Institute (N.C. I) in the pediatric  wards.   Data was collected using a structured interview schedule it was developed by the researchers the first one was for children’ sociodemographic data and cancer history, the second was to assess the respiratory efficiency and the third was the pediatric facial pain scale. The study’s results revealed that more than half of the studied children were male, less than two thirds of the studied children had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL), The majority of the studied children had pain as an associated problem from cancer and its treatment. All the children had easy fatigability, loss of weight, and feeding problems. There were significance differences between pre and post breathing exercises in relation to vital signs, O2 saturation and pain intensity. Multiple efforts from pediatric oncology team are needed to prepare children with cancer prior conducting cancer treatment as well their mothers or care givers. Further researches are needed on a larger sample for generalization of the reached results.

Keywords: Breathing Exercise- chemotherapy - respiratory efficiency – pain