Effect of foot reflexology on blood pressure and quality of sleep among elderly with hypertension in selected old age homes

Complementary therapies are important in nursing interventions to promote sleep and reduce blood pressure. This study used a true experimental pre-test post-test control group design. Sixty participants were selected using simple random sampling through the lottery method. PSQI was used to assess the quality of sleep among the participants through a structured interview. The experimental group received eight cycles of foot reflexology for 20 minutes weekly twice. The study showed that there was a significant decrease in the mean systolic blood pressure from 150.73±14.51 in the pre-test to 132.57±13.17 in the post-test, which was statistically significant at p-value <0.001 (z value -4.793). There was also a significant decrease in the mean diastolic blood pressure from 87.10±3.73 in the pre-test to 74.83±4.33 in the post-test, which was statistically significant at p-value <0.001(z value -4.790). Furthermore, there was a significant increase in the mean quality of sleep from 7.03±2.88 in the pre-test to 3.23±1.92 in the post-test, which was statistically significant at p- value <0.001(z value -4.243). In conclusion, foot reflexology can significantly reduce blood pressure and improve the quality of sleep among elderly people with hypertension residing in old age homes.