Effectiveness of Olive Oil with Virgin Coconut Oil on Pruritus Grade Scores Among Hemodialysis Patients

Abstract

Hemodialysis is an action taken to treat various problems caused by Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD). Pruritus is a complication that often occurs due to hemodialysis. This can cause injury to the skin and interfere with patient comfort. Emollients are recommended to treat pruritus. Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO) and Olive Oil (OO) are effective emollients to treat pruritus because they are easy to obtain, natural, and without side effects. The purpose of this study was to assess differences in the effectiveness of reducing pruritus grade scores in hemodialysis patients using VCO and OO. This study used a quasi-experiment with two groups pre-posttest design. Samples were taken using the purposive sampling technique involving 72 patients undergoing hemodialysis which were divided into two groups (VCO and OO). The instrument used was the score of the degree of pruritus and the data were analyzed by the Mann-Whitney test. The results of the study obtained a p-value of 0.008 (<0.05) which means that there is a difference in the effectiveness of giving VCO with OO on the score of the degree of pruritus in patients. It was found that VCO is more effective in reducing the score of the degree of pruritus in patients. So, the nurses can use VCO as an alternative intervention in the treatment of pruritus in hemodialysis patients.