Aromatherapy oils of lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) inhalance reduced norepinephrine levels of woman with postpartum blues based on Edinburgh postpartum depression scale

Abstract

Postpartum blues are the most common mood disorder commonly found in the postpartum period. This disorder negatively impacts on the health of mothers and their babies which results in poor treatment. The pathophysiology of postpartum blues is known to be associated with the noradrenergic system. This study aimed to determine the effect of aromatherapy oils of lavender inlahance on norepinephrine levels of mothers with postpartum blues. A quasi-experimental study with a pretest-posttest control group design was conducted from April to May 2019 in three health centers. The purposive sampling method was used to obtain data from the treatment and control groupsculminated in 28 people. Furthermore, five drops of aromatherapy lavender administered on cotton was inhaled by the groups for 15 minutes twice a week for four weeks. Urine was collected to measure norepinephrine metabolites; the data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. A total of 55 postpartum women were screened, out of which 33 (60%) experienced postpartum blues. Data from norepinephrine measurement results were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-ranks test with a p-value of 0.157 > 0.05. The analysis results showed no significant difference in the norepinephrine levels of the control group. Meanwhile, in the treatment group, p-value was 0.001 < 0.05 which indicated significant differences. Lavender aromatherapy effectively reduced the levels of norepinephrine in women with postpartum blues.