Sniffing lavender before surgery may ease jitters, study finds
NCT ID NCT03583801
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested whether aromatherapy with essential oils can reduce anxiety in adults before elective upper limb surgery. 289 participants were randomly assigned to either receive aromatherapy or not. The goal was to see if the scent helped people feel calmer in the operating room.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
-
289 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
-
Sep 2018
- Finished
-
Sep 2024
- Lead sponsor
-
Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
-
18 to 90 years
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Patient admitted in Hospital Centre for an ambulatory elective upper limb " fast track " surgery * Patient with loco-regional anesthesia * Patient categorized 3 or less according to the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score * The patient must have given his written consent to participate in the study * Patient - insured under the French social security system * Patient prepared to comply with all the terms of the study and its length Exclusion Criteria: * Epileptic patients * Asthmatic patients * Patients with cognitive disorders ( Mini Mental Status below 15) * Psychiatric disorders : current depression or bipolar disease or anxiety disorders or psychotic disorders according to DSM-V classification * American Society of Anesthesiologists score strictly superior to 3 * Preoperative chronic pain : neuropathic pain, fibromyalgia, polyarthritis * Pregnant or breastfeeding woman * Patient unable to receive an informed consent and to comply with all the terms of the study * Patient without any social insurance * Refusal to sign the consent * Patient under legal protection * Patient in emergency (unstable clinical state) * Patient unable to read or write french * Patient enrolled in an other clinical trial
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Anxiety are added.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Centre hospitalier
Valenciennes, France
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can video games calm anxious teens?
- Can a group program teach teens to cope before therapy starts?
- Could a Patient's playlist take the sting out of nerve testing?
- Three spanish group sessions put a neuroscience twist on anxiety therapy
- Can a rewired EMDR therapy ease the mental toll of migration?
- Can yoga calm anxious minds and sharpen focus?