Comparison of the effect of prayer and ginger on the severity of pain and anxiety in inpatients with burn: Palliative care.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: One of the symptoms of burning is chronic and severe pain that affects the quality of life of patients. The aim of this article was to compare of the effect of prayer and ginger on the severity of pain and anxiety in inpatients with burn. METHODS: This study is a clinical trial study on 120 patients referred to the Burn Ward of Kashani Hospital affiliated to Shahrekord University of Medical Sciences in the southwest of Iran. Patients were randomly divided into three groups: control, prayer and ginger. The visual analogue scale (VAS) was used to determine the severity of pain and the standard measure Spielberger Anxiety Inventory was used to assess anxiety. In this study, group 1 received placebo (starch) capsules (250 mg) daily, group 2 - ginger capsules (250 mg) plus 20 ml water after each meal on a daily basis and group 3 was asked to recite the prayer for 10 minutes three times in the morning, evening and night every day. Data analysis was done by descriptive and inferential statistics (ANOVA and Tukey's test) in the SPSS. RESULTS: After the intervention, the pain levels in the prayer and ginger groups at days 3 and 6 of hospitalization, were lower than the control group. On day 6 mean anxiety level was significantly lower in the prayer group than in the ginger group (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: According to the results of this study, it is recommended that using ginger or prayer be applied to reduce the pain and anxiety of burn patients, because they not only cause no side effects but also are low cost, leading to reduction in drug consumption and the resulting side effects.