Bakgrund: Förstoppning orsakar obehag och onödigt lidande med en hög prevalens världen över. Behandlingen av förstoppning är idag främst farmakologisk i form av laxerande. Sjuksköterskan har en begränsad arsenal av omvårdnadsåtgärder till hens förfogande för att behandla förstoppning. En potentiell icke farmakologisk omvårdnadsåtgärd är magmassage. Syfte: Syftet med denna litteraturstudie var att undersöka effekten av magmassage hos vuxna förstoppade individer för att få en bild av dess användbarhet som omvårdnadsåtgärd. Metod: Sökningar utfördes i Pubmed, Web of Science samt Ebscos alla databaser. Åtta empiriska kvantitativa interventionsstudier inkluderades i denna litteraturstudie. Studierna kvalitetsgranskades och analyserades. Effekten av magmassage som mätts i inkluderade studier med signifikansnivå på p<0.05 sammanställdes i resultatdelen. Resultat: Samtliga studier kunde påvisa en positiv effekt gentemot förstoppningssymtom oavsett interventionstid. I flera studier har även andra positiva effekter gått att utläsa kopplat till interventionen magmassage, bland annat ökad livskvalité. Konklusion: Sammanställningen av resultatet tyder på att magmassage har en positiv effekt på förstoppade individer. Det i kombination med den låga kostnaden och avsaknaden av bieffekter gör magmassage till en användbar omvårdnadsåtgärd vid behandling av förstoppning både på lång- och korttidsliggande patienter. / Background: Constipation causes pain and discomfort and is a prevalent problem around the world. Treatment options today concludes mainly of pharmacological interventions in the form of laxatives. As a nurse there are a limited number of care options to treat constipation. One non-pharmacological care option that shows potential is abdominal massage. Aim: The aim of this literature review was to investigate the effects of abdominal massage in constipated adults to determine its viability as a care intervention. Methods: Searches were made in Pubmed, Web of science and all of Ebsco’s databases. Eight empirical quantitative intervention studies were included in this literature review. The studies were graded and analyzed. All results from the included studies that measured the effect of abdominal massage and could prove a statistically significant correlation with a p<0.05 were compiled in the results. Result: All studies showed positive effects towards constipation symptoms, regardless of intervention length. A number of studies also found other positives effects such as improved quality of life. Conclusion: The results indicate that abdominal massage has a positive effect when it comes to treating constipation. That in addition with it being a cost-effective option with a lack of side effects makes it a viable care option to treat constipation whether it’s used on short term or long term stay patients.

This thesis evaluates experiences, effects, and costs of abdominal massage for people with constipation. The thesis comprises four papers: Paper I is a literature review of health economic analysis of nursing practice. Paper II and III is a prospective randomized controlled trial that evaluates abdominal massage in terms of effects and costs. Paper IV uses a qualitative approach to illuminate the experiences of receiving abdominal massage. Paper II and III included 60 participants who were constipated in accordance with Rome II criteria. Paper IV included nine participants. Paper I investigated the application of economic evaluation in studies of nursing practice. Systematic database searches were performed and gave nearly 600 papers that were screened and 115 studies were relevant according to stipulated inclusion criteria. The result showed that there was a trend of increased publications from the year 2000. Few studies reported the health economic methods used and the perspective of the economic analysis. There was a large variability in number of included cost items. Because the methodological weaknesses in many studies, it was difficult to use some studies as ground for discussion of resource distribution. Paper II investigates the effects of abdominal massage on gastrointestinal function and laxative intake on persons with constipation. The questionnaire Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (GSRS) was used and data were analyzed using multiple linear regression. The results showed that after eight weeks of abdominal massage the intervention group experienced significantly fewer gastrointestinal symptoms and had significantly more bowel evacuation compared with the control group. There were no differences in laxative intake. Paper III evaluated the change in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for people with constipation when receiving abdominal massage and estimates the cost-effectiveness of two alternative implementation scenarios: 1) abdominal massage given by enrolled nurses in a department; and 2) participants giving themselves abdominal massage after receiving training in self-massage. Both scenarios imply that all participants received abdominal massage for eight weeks and those who found the treatment effective continued to receive treatment for eight more weeks. EQ-5D was used to assess HRQoL and for calculating QALY. The intervention group had after eight weeks of abdominal massage significantly higher HRQoL assessed with EQ-5D VAS compared with the control group. No significant differences were assessed with the EQ-5D index. Abdominal massage is initially expensive, but for those who respond favourably abdominal massage can be a cost-effective long-term treatment. Paper IV examines the experiences of receiving abdominal massage when having constipation. Four themes were formulated: being on one’s guard, becoming embraced by safe hands, feeling touch to body and mind, and being in a fragile state. Receiving abdominal massage was described as comfortable and lead to decreased problems with constipation. The improvement was described as easily disturbed and it was associated with demands to continue massage to maintain the new state. Conclusion: Abdominal massage is a pleasant treatment that provides significantly fewer gastrointestinal symptoms and increased health-related quality of life. As a long- term treatment, abdominal massage can be a cost-effective treatment.