Table 2.
Characteristics of included studies
| Author (Publication year) | Country | Design of Study | Sample Size /Group | Type of Intervention | Intervention Time Schedule | Population (Mean or age range) | Outcomes Measures | Instrument |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oleson (1993) | USA | RCT |
35 EG:18 CG:17 |
EG: Foot, hand and ear reflexology; CG: Placebo reflexology | 30 min | Females with Premenstrual symptoms (Mean age: EG:37.2; CG:32.7) | Total PMS; Somatic symbtoms; Psychological symbtoms | PMS scale (made by researcher) |
| Kim (2002) | South Korea | Quasi expermental desin |
40 EG:20 CG:20 |
EG: Foot reflexology; CG: no treatment | 60 min | Female college student (range: 21–33 years) | Total PMS and dysmenorrhea | Keele VAS and opening records |
| Kim (2004) | South Korea | RCT |
48 EG:24 CG:24 |
EG: Self foot reflexology; CG: no treatment | 35 min | High school girls (range: U) | Total PMS; Behavioral symbtoms; Psychological symbtoms; Dysmenorrhea | MDQ; VAS |
| Lee (2011) | South Korea | Quasi expermental desin |
61 EG:37 CG:24 |
EG: Aroma-foot-reflexology; CG: no treatment | 60 min | Female college student (Mean age: EG:19.3; CG19.4) | Total PMS and dysmenorrhea; Lower abdominalskin temperature | PMS scale (made by researcher); VAS; Portable digital skin thermometer |
| Abdollahi Fard (2013) | Iran | Single blind RCT |
90 EG:45 CG:45 |
EG: Foot reflexology; CG: Placebo reflexology | 30 min | Female college student (Mean age: EG:20.8; CG:20.5) | Total PMS; Somatic symbtoms; Psychological symbtoms | Daily record scale |
| Baghdassari (2015) | Iran | RCT |
40 EG:20 CG:20 |
EG: Foot reflexology; CG: no treatment | 60 min | Females with Premenstrual symptoms (Range: 31–45) | Total PMS | PMS scale |
| Nalini (2015) | India | Quasi experimental |
30 EG:15 CG:15 |
EG: Foot, hand reflexology; CG: no treatment | 40 min | Female college student (Range: 17–20) | Total PMS; Somatic symbtoms; Psychological symbtoms; Emotional symptoms; Physiological symptoms | PMS scale |
| Prema (2017) | India | RCT |
30 EG:15 CG:15 |
EG: Foot reflexology; CG: no treatment | 20 min |
Adolescent girls (Mean age: EG:U; CG:U) |
Total PMS; Psychological symbtoms | VAS |
| Shafaie (2018) | Iran | Double blind RCT |
101 EG:52 CG:49 |
EG: Foot reflexology; CG: Placebo reflexology | 30 min | Female college student (Mean age: EG:22.3; CG:21.46) | Total PMS; Somatic symbtoms; Behavioral symptoms: Psychological symbtoms | Daily record scale |
EG: Experimental group; CG: Control group; PMS: Premenstrual syndrome; RCT: Randomized controlled trial; MDQ: Menstural Distress Questionnaire; VAS: Visual analogue scale; U: unclear