The Effect of Lavendula (Lavender) Oil Massage as an Adjunct Management of the Anxiety Scores of Children, age 8-16 years old, with Autism-Spectrum-Disorder:

A Randomized Controlled Cross-Over Trial, December 2023, Capitol Medical Center

By: Beatrice Alyssa Marie Sarte-Tan, MD, Marcelino Reysio-Cruz, MD

Background

Anxiety disorders are common among children with autism spectrum disorder. Aside from pharmacological management, other non-pharmacologic interventions are suggested to regain better control of their behavior. Massage and use of aromatic scents of lavender as complementary alternative medicine have been popularly studied. This study aims to address the limited choices of therapy for autism by providing a possible alternative with essential oils, as an adjunct to management of anxiety.  Also, there is limited scientific trials supporting the use of essential oils in children and adults with autism and majority of claims come from case studies and the anecdotal writings of parents, caregivers, and practitioners.

General Objective

To determine the effect of aromatherapy (lavender oil) massage on the anxiety level of children with autism spectrum disorder using Anxiety Scale for Children – autism spectrum disorder (ASCASD-P) score

Methodology

A randomized, open-label, cross-over design was used for this study with a wash-out period of 1 week. Included were children with autism spectrum disorder aged 8-16 years old, recruited from the patient pool of General and Developmental Pediatricians.  The intervention studied is the use of a mixture of lavender oil of 2% in concentration, applied through massage to the upper and lower extremities 3x a week for 4 weeks, following a given massage protocol. The outcome measured was anxiety scores using the tool: anxiety scale for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASC-ASD).

Results

A total of 77 patients with ASD were included. The mean total post-intervention anxiety scale scores (12.7) were significantly lower than control (15.6) and baseline (17.4) (F=25.7, pvalue<0.0001). Also, all the mean subscale scores were significantly lower at post-intervention than in control and baseline: Performance anxiety (F=3.9, p-value=0.0219), Anxious arousal (F=8.0, p-value=0.0005), Separation anxiety (F=5.4, p-value=0.055, and Uncertainty (F=15.7, p<0.0001).

Conclusion

Lavendula (Lavender) oil massage as an adjunct management was effective on the reduction of anxiety scores among children with autism spectrum disorder. Further studies are needed to determine the frequency and massage techniques that will maximize its benefits.  Keywords: Lavender Oil, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Aromatherapy massage.

Oleia Lavender Oil was used in this study.