Investigation of the Effect of Abdominal Massage Applied to Palliative Care Patients on Constipation and Quality of Life

The problem of constipation plays a very important role among these symptoms that patients experience intensely and negatively affect their quality of life. Although constipation is not a disease, it is a condition that causes discomfort to the person and may develop due to idiopathic reasons, as well as depending on diet, exercise habits, medications used and various disease processes. It may also occur. Constipation is one of the most common symptoms in patients treated in palliative care, and its prevalence is thought to be approximately 30-90%. Constipation is the third most common problem in palliative care, after pain and loss of appetite. Although drug therapy is the first method that comes to mind in the treatment of constipation, as it is known, medical treatment has many side effects risks and long-term drug use causes health problems. It creates a high financial burden on the care system. The high side effects and costs of laxative drugs used in the management of constipation necessitate the use of non-pharmacological methods. Non-pharmacological methods used in the management of constipation generally include regular exercise, fluid intake, and increased consumption of fiber foods. One of them is the abdominal massage method. The number of studies on the effects of abdominal massage in the Palliative Care patient group, who frequently experience constipation, is very limited in the literature. For these reasons, the study was planned to examine the effect of abdominal massage applied to palliative care patients on constipation and quality of life.