title: Promoting sleep for hospitalized patients with advanced cancer with relaxation therapy: experience of a randomized study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Sleep disorders are frequent in patients with advanced cancer receiving palliative care. The objective of this study was to demonstrate whether relaxation therapy can improve their satisfaction with sleep.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Few studies have investigated the effectiveness of relaxation in patients hospitalized with an advanced chronic disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective randomized study with an immediate intervention group (IIG; relaxation days 3-6) and a delayed intervention group (DIG; relaxation days 6-9).
  
  
  METHODS
  The main measure was the overall satisfaction of sleep measured on a Numerical Rating Scale of Satisfaction of Sleep (NRSSS) between 0 and 10.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Totally 18 (IIG: 9; DIG: 9) patients were included in this study (mean age 66 ± 10.7). The NRSSS improved in both the groups (almost statistically significant) between the day of inclusion and day 2. Because of the dropout of the patients during the last days of the study, we analyzed the improvement in sleep satisfaction only between day 2 and 5. The NRSSS D5 for the immediate and delayed groups were 4.0 ± 23 and 3.8 ± 2.3, respectively. There was no significant improvement in both the groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results demonstrated the difficulty to include patients with advanced cancer in a randomized study with a DIG. We were not able to demonstrate the effectiveness of relaxation therapy on sleep satisfaction.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Techniques that can be easily used to improve sleep in patients with an advanced cancer should be developed and used already early in the disease.
authors.affiliation: Division of Palliative Medicine, University Hospital Geneva, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland. dominique.ducloux@hcuge.ch
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ducloux
authors.forename: Huguette
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Guisado
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pautex
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D012064:Relaxation Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D012890:Sleep; D012893:Sleep Wake Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires