Development of Bartunita Aromatherapy Oil to Help Relieve Pain and Stiffness in the Lower Muscles Among Farmers

Abstract

Introduction and objective: Low back pain is a serious symptom as its impact will decrease the patient's quality of life. In Thailand’s three southern border provinces, there are plenty of Strobilanthes crispa Blume trees, locally known as bartunita or Hin Fa Laep trees and used as medicinal plants. The plant is rich in chemical compounds essentially used for pain relief and as an anti-inflammatory drug. Therefore, the researcher is interested in developing an aroma oil with the main ingredient being bartunita leaves to help relieve lower back pain and stiffness among farmers.

Methods: The research was conducted in three stages: Step1: Determine the situation of lower back pain. A purposive sampling method was used for recruiting 14 participants. A questionnaire and group discussions were employed for data collection. Step2: Develop bartunita aroma oil from eight herbs. Step3: Explore the efficacy of and satisfaction with the bartunita aroma oil by assessing the pain levels before and after using aromatherapy oil in 27 participants. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to analyze the data, and descriptive statistics were used to determine patient satisfaction.

Results: Among the participants, most of them (77.8%) had low back pain and stiffness caused by occupations. Furthermore, previously used packages were too big and difficult to utilize. After using the bartunita aroma oil, the lower back pain level dropped significantly compared with before (P = 0.05). Their satisfaction levels with the product's quality and style were high and highest, respectively.

Discussion: The developed bartunita aroma oil contained eight herbal extracts or products from ginger, cloves, black sesame, bergamot essential oil, lavender essential oil, eucalyptus essential oil and coconut oil. In particular, the key ingredient was bartunita leaves obtained from bartunita plant in the family Acanthaceae, which has important properties for reducing muscle aches and inflammation. In addition, eucalyptus essential oil has pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory effects. It is possible that the action of bartunita aroma oil on reducing lower back pain is likely due to the activities and chemical composition of all the ingredients used in the extraction of bartunita aroma oil.

Conclusion: Bartunita aroma oil can be used as a therapeutic option for people with lower back pain. It can also be utilized as a starting point for developing aromatherapy oils to assist in decreasing pain and stiffness in various sections of the body.