The Effects of Manual Pressure on the Injection Site on Vaccination Pain Among Infants: A Two-Group Clinical Trial

Background: Vaccination is the main cause of iatrogenic pain, stress, and anxiety for children and parents. Objectives: This study aimed to assess the effects of manual pressure on vaccination pain among infants. Methods: This two-group clinical trial was conducted on 60 infants, four months old, conveniently recruited from a primary healthcare center in Birjand, Iran. The participants were randomly allocated to the control and intervention groups by block randomization. In the intervention group, the participants were provided with manual pressure applied using the thumb on the injection site for ten seconds immediately before vaccination until the injection. The participants in the control group did not receive any pre-vaccination manual pressure. Vaccination pain intensity and post-vaccination crying length were assessed using the face, legs, activity, cry, and consolability (FLACC) scale and a digital stopwatch, respectively. The chi-square, independent-sample t-test, and Mann-Whitney U tests were used for data analysis at a significance level of 0.05. Results: The mean of pain intensity in the intervention group was significantly less than the control group (P = 0.012), while no significant difference was found between the groups respecting the length of crying (P = 0.61). Conclusions: Manual pressure on the injection site is effective in significantly alleviating vaccination pain among infants. Further studies are still needed to produce firm evidence in this area.