The Effect of Sole Reflexology Massage vs. Stretching Exercises on Fatigue Dimensions in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Background: Fatigue is the most common complaint among patients with rheumatoid arthritis, leading to decreased productivity and reduced quality of life. Aim: The present study was conducted with aim to compare the effect of sole reflexology and stretching exercises on fatigue of rheumatoid arthritis patients. Method: This clinical trial study was conducted on patients with rheumatoid arthritis in Yasuj city of Iran during 2017-2018. Participants were selected through convenience sampling method but randomly allocated to one of the three groups using randomized block allocation. Multidimensional fatigue questionnaire was used to collect data at two times of pre and post interventions. The interventions were performed during 30 minutes per session for three sessions per week over one month. Results: Mean scores of global fatigue before the interventions in the sole reflexology group was 80.72±8.61, in stretching exercise group 81±7.30, and in control group (76.43±8.17), however, these values for post intervention were reported to be 68.72±8.59, 50.95±5.73, and 76.82±7.43, respectively. Intergroup comparison showed significant differences between the sole reflexology and stretching exercise groups with the control group (p 0.001); also the two intervention groups significantly differed (p 0.001). Implications for Practice: Both sole reflexology and stretching exercises could improve fatigue of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, but this improvement was higher by stretching exercises than sole reflexology.