Key result
Foot massage therapy lowers blood pressure by ~21 mmHg systolic compared to usual care.
Why the study?
Simple, safe, community-based non-pharmacological nursing interventions are needed to complement antihypertensive medication in older adults with hypertension, motivating an examination of the effect of foot massage therapy on blood pressure.
Does foot massage therapy reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure in older adults aged ≥60 years with hypertension?
Does foot massage therapy reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure in older adults aged ≥60 years with hypertension?
Short-term daily foot massage therapy significantly lowered systolic and diastolic blood pressure in hypertensive older adults compared to usual care, suggesting potential utility as a complementary community nursing intervention.
May support short-term foot massage as adjunct in community hypertension care; leaves open confirmation via larger randomized trials.
Background: Hypertension remains a leading noncommunicable disease among older adults, and simple, safe, community-based non-pharmacological nursing interventions are needed to complement antihypertensive medication. Objective: To examine the effect of foot massage therapy on systolic and diastolic blood pressure in older adults with hypertension. Methods: A quasi-experimental pretest–posttest control group design was conducted at a community elderly integrated health post in Central Java, Indonesia, in April 2026. Thirty-six hypertensive older adults aged ≥60 years were recruited through total sampling and assigned to an intervention group (n = 18) or a control group (n = 18). The intervention group received foot massage based on a standard operating procedure for 15–20 minutes once daily for three consecutive days, while the control group received usual care. Blood pressure was measured with a sphygmomanometer before and after each session. Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the Mann–Whitney U test. Results: In the intervention group, mean systolic/diastolic blood pressure decreased from 169.5/104.2 to 148.3/90.6 mmHg (p < 0.001), whereas in the control group it increased from 169.8/101.4 to 182.2/107.7 mmHg. Changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure differed significantly between groups (p < 0.001), with a large effect size (r = 0.85–0.86). Conclusion: Foot massage effectively lowers blood pressure in older adults with hypertension and can be integrated by community nurses as a complementary intervention alongside pharmacological treatment.
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Riyanti et al. (2026) studied Hypertension (n=36). Foot massage therapy vs. Usual care was evaluated on Change in systolic and diastolic blood pressure (r = 0.85–0.86, p=<0.001). Foot massage therapy significantly decreased blood pressure from 169.5/104.2 to 148.3/90.6 mmHg compared to usual care (p < 0.001; r = 0.85–0.86).
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