ClinicalTrials.gg
Status unknownNCT04867824LVEO-SME1Updated Apr 30, 2021

The Use of Lavender vs Vanilla Essential Oil as Complementary Analgesia for Frenotomy in Healthy Newborns

An interventional study of Case (use of inhaled vanilla essential oil) and Control (use of inhaled lavender essential oil) in Ankyloglossia, sponsored by Parc de Salut Mar. Status unknown. Open to participants aged 0 Days to 15 Days. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2021-04-30.

Sponsored by Parc de Salut Mar · Not applicable, Interventional, and Supportive care

The sponsor has not verified this record recently (last verified Apr 2021), so the status shown — last known as Not yet recruiting — may be out of date.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
142
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
0 Days to 15 Days
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Clipping of the tongue-tie is a common procedure that physicians perform in our neonatal unit to help establish breastfeeding. It is a painful technique where the measures usually performed to control pain (such as sucking) cannot be done at the time of the clipping because the technique is performed on the tongue. A previous study conducted at our center proved the benefits of inhaled lavender essential oil to control pain during frenotomy, for which inhaled essential oil is now routinely used when clipping a tongue-tie. The aim of this study was to compare the analgesic/soothing effect of inhaled lavender essential oil vs inhaled vanilla essential oil during the clipping of the tongue-tie. Participants will be newborns born at our hospital during the study period (expected to be May to December 2021). Patients will be offered to participate and will be enrolled in the study if their parents agree to and sign an informed consent. The use of inhaled lavender and vanilla essential oils is safe. No side effects have been found with their use. The procedure of the frenotomy will not change for patients who are enrolled in the study. At the moment, inhaled lavender essential oil is used as complementary analgesia for the clipping of tongue-ties in our neonatal unit. By demonstrating which of the two oils has better results, the investigators aim to improve pain management of the patients who undergo a frenotomy. This study will take place at the neonatal unit of Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, Spain.

Read the detailed description

A randomized clinical trial will be conducted with the neonates born at our hospital or less than 15 days old who undergo a frenotomy for type 3 tongue-ties according to Coryllos classification and the Hazelbaker tool during the study period (expected to take place from May to December 2021). Pain will be assessed by means of crying time, the highest Neonatal Infant Pain Scale (NIPS) score in the five minutes post procedure, increase in heart rate (HR) and decrease in oxygen saturation (satO2) pre/post-procedure. NIPS evaluates facial expression, crying, breathing pattern, arm and leg position, and state of arousal on a scale from 0 to 7, where 0-2 means no pain to mild pain, 3-4 mild to moderate pain, and >4 severe pain. In an exploratory preliminary study prior to the intervention, a mean (SD) crying time of 19.80 (21.14) seconds was observed. In order to detect a difference of 10 seconds in crying time, the investigators calculated that a sample size of 71 patients per group would be required in order to draw conclusions with a CI 95% and a power of 80%. Patients will be enrolled if their parents agree to and sign a written informed consent. Demographic (sex, gestational age, birth weight, age in hours at the time of frenotomy) and clinical variables (HR and satO2 before, during, and after the procedure, whether there is crying or not during the procedure, length of crying time in seconds, presence of side effects during the procedure (apnea, desaturation, others) and highest NIPS score within the first 5 minutes after the procedure) will be recorded. The independent variable will be the use of inhaled lavender essential oil (LEO) or the use of inhaled vanilla essential oil during frenotomy. The dependent variables will be: HR and satO2 pre and post procedure, presence of crying and duration, hours of life at the time of the frenotomy, and the NIPS score. The controlled variables will be: gestational age, sex, and birth weight.

Healthcare providers assess for the presence of ankyloglossia as part of the routine neonatal evaluation and offer a frenotomy to all tongue-tied patients. The examiner grades the ankyloglossia based on Coryllos's criteria and the Hazelbaker tool to assess its impact on tongue movement and on breastfeeding. A lingual frenulum is symptomatic if it scores 8 points or less in appearance and/or 11 points or less in function according to Hazelbaker. Advice and help with positioning and attachment for breastfeeding is provided to all the mothers by IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) nurses. During the study period, if a patient with a type 3 tongue-tie is identified, the patient's parents will be offered to participate in this study. Accepted patients will be allocated into case (vanilla essential oil) or control (LEO) group by simple random sampling using the program OxMAR (Online Minimization and Randomization for Clinical Trials).

During the frenotomy the neonate will be taken to the neonatal unit and monitored with a pulse-oximeter (COVIDIEN Nellcor Portable SpO2 Patient Monitoring System PM10N, Covidien Ireland Limited, IDA Business \& Technology Park, Tullamore, Ireland) before, during and after the procedure. For both groups the neonates will de swaddled, administered 1 mL of oral sucrose, and allowed to suck for 2 minutes prior to the procedure. The control group will have a 7 x 7 cm gauze pad with 1 drop of 100% pure LEO (Pranarôm España S.L.) placed 2 cm under their nose for 2 minutes prior to starting the frenotomy and during the procedure. The case group will have a 7 x 7 cm gauze pad with 1 drop of 100% pure vanilla essential oil (Pranarôm España S.L.) placed 2 cm under their nose for 2 minutes prior to starting the frenotomy and during the procedure. The bottle of both essential oils has a dropper that always dispenses the same amount of oil per drop. The procedure will not start until the patient is calm and has a NIPS score of 0. Frenotomy will be performed by one of the three staff neonatologists using Coryllos' technique: placing a sterile groove director under the tongue straddling the frenulum, holding the frenulum in place with visualization of tongue base and frenulum, and snipping the frenulum with a scissor along the underside of the tongue to its base just proximal to the genioglossus muscle, until a full release is achieved. Once the procedure is completed, the gauze pad will be removed and vital signs recorded, as well as whether the baby cried or not, the seconds crying lasted, and the post procedure NIPS score on a data collection sheet. If a neonate cries, calming techniques such as holding, swaddling, and sucking will be employed. Following the frenotomy, the neonate will be returned to the mother for breastfeeding.

Statistical analysis: Quantitative variables (gestational age, birth weight, age at frenotomy, heart rate pre and post-procedure, increase in heart rate postprocedure, oxygen saturation pre and post-procedure, decrease in oxygen saturation post-procedure, and duration of crying) will be described using the mean, standard deviation, and 95% confidence interval (CI); case vs control groups will be compared with a Student's t test. Sex, the presence of crying, and adverse effects between the two groups will be presented in percentages and will be compared using Fisher's exact test. NIPS scores between cases and controls will be compared with the Wilcoxon rank-sum (Mann-Whitney) test. Statistical significance will be set for a p \<0.05. To perform statistical analyses, the investigators will use STATA version 15.1 (StataCorp, College Station, TX, USA).

Our hospital Ethics Committee (CEIm-PSMAR) will approve this study (reference code: 2021/9731/I). Prior to patient enrollment, the investigators will obtain a signed informed consent from the neonate's parents. This study will be conducted according to the ethics code of the Barcelona Medical Association and the principles of the Helsinki-Fortaleza Declaration 2013.

02

Conditions studied

  • Ankyloglossia

Keywords

  • ankyloglossia
  • tongue-tie
  • aromatherapy
  • lavender
  • vanilla
  • pain
  • neonate
  • frenotomy
03

In context

Ankyloglossia

32 studies on the registry are indexed under Ankyloglossia; 8 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 142 is above the median of 105 across 22 interventional studies indexed under Ankyloglossia.

Browse Ankyloglossia studies →

Lead sponsor

Parc de Salut Mar is the lead sponsor of 182 studies on the registry; 25 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
0 Days to 15 Days
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Healthy full-term neonates born at Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Spain), or less than 15 days old who had been discharged and returned for the frenotomy, who underwent a frenotomy for type 3 tongue-ties according to Coryllos classification and the Hazelbaker tool during the study period

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Refusal of the patient's parents to participate
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Supportive care
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Participant)
Enrollment
142 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    Control

    The neonate will be taken to the neonatal unit and monitored with a pulse-oximeter before, during and after the procedure. We will swaddle it, will administer 1 mL of oral sucrose, let the newborn suck for 2 minutes prior to the procedure, and will have a 7 x 7 cm gauze pad with 1 drop of 100% pure LEO (Pranarôm España S.L.) placed 2 cm under the nose for 2 minutes prior to starting the frenotomy and during the procedure.

    Dietary Supplement: Control (use of inhaled lavender essential oil)

  • Experimental
    Case

    The neonate will be taken to the neonatal unit and monitored with a pulse-oximeter before, during and after the procedure. We will swaddle it, will administer 1 mL of oral sucrose, let the newborn suck for 2 minutes prior to the procedure, and will have a 7 x 7 cm gauze pad with 1 drop of 100% pure vanilla essential oil (Pranarôm España S.L.) placed 2 cm under the nose for 2 minutes prior to starting the frenotomy and during the procedure.

    Dietary Supplement: Case (use of inhaled vanilla essential oil)

Interventions

  • Dietary supplementCase (use of inhaled vanilla essential oil)

    Use of inhaled vanilla essential oil during frenotomy for a tongue-tie

  • Dietary supplementControl (use of inhaled lavender essential oil)

    Use of inhaled lavender essential oil during frenotomy for a tongue-tie

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Crying length

    Crying length after the frenotomy in seconds

    Time frame: Up to 5 minutes post-procedure

  2. NIPS score

    Neonatal Infant Pain Score value (0-7). NIPS evaluates facial expression, crying, breathing pattern, arm and leg position, and state of arousal on a scale from 0 to 7, where 0-2 means no pain to mild pain, 3-4 mild to moderate pain, and \>4 severe pain.

    Time frame: Up to 5 minutes post-procedure

  3. Increase in heart rate

    Increase in heart rate pre/post-procedure (beats per minute)

    Time frame: Up to 5 minutes post-procedure

  4. Decrease in oxygen saturation

    Decrease in oxygen saturation (%)

    Time frame: Up to 5 minutes post-procedure

07

Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

08

References and documents

Publications

  • Goubet N, Strasbaugh K, Chesney J. Familiarity breeds content? Soothing effect of a familiar odor on full-term newborns. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2007 Jun;28(3):189-94. doi: 10.1097/dbp.0b013e31802d0b8d. PubMed 17565285 ↗
  • Johnston CC, Fernandes AM, Campbell-Yeo M. Pain in neonates is different. Pain. 2011 Mar;152(3 Suppl):S65-S73. doi: 10.1016/j.pain.2010.10.008. Epub 2010 Oct 23. PubMed 20971562 ↗
  • Fitri SYR, Wardhani V, Rakhmawati W, Pahria T, Hendrawati S. Culturally Based Practice in Neonatal Procedural Pain Management: A Mini Review. Front Pediatr. 2020 Sep 3;8:540. doi: 10.3389/fped.2020.00540. eCollection 2020. PubMed 33014934 ↗
  • Razaghi N, Aemmi SZ, Sadat Hoseini AS, Boskabadi H, Mohebbi T, Ramezani M. The effectiveness of familiar olfactory stimulation with lavender scent and glucose on the pain of blood sampling in term neonates: A randomized controlled clinical trial. Complement Ther Med. 2020 Mar;49:102289. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2019.102289. Epub 2019 Dec 26. PubMed 32147068 ↗
  • Mitchell A, Boss BJ. Adverse effects of pain on the nervous systems of newborns and young children: a review of the literature. J Neurosci Nurs. 2002 Oct;34(5):228-36. doi: 10.1097/01376517-200210000-00002. PubMed 12391738 ↗
  • Stevens B, Yamada J, Ohlsson A, Haliburton S, Shorkey A. Sucrose for analgesia in newborn infants undergoing painful procedures. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2016 Jul 16;7(7):CD001069. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001069.pub5. PubMed 27420164 ↗
  • Harrison D, Larocque C, Bueno M, Stokes Y, Turner L, Hutton B, Stevens B. Sweet Solutions to Reduce Procedural Pain in Neonates: A Meta-analysis. Pediatrics. 2017 Jan;139(1):e20160955. doi: 10.1542/peds.2016-0955. Epub 2016 Dec 16. PubMed 27986905 ↗
  • Leng HY, Zheng XL, Yan L, Zhang XH, He HY, Xiang M. [Effects of different types and concentration of oral sweet solution on reducing neonatal pain during heel lance procedures]. Zhonghua Er Ke Za Zhi. 2013 Sep;51(9):654-8. Chinese. PubMed 24330983 ↗
  • Jones JE, Kassity N. Varieties of alternative experience: complementary care in the neonatal intensive care unit. Clin Obstet Gynecol. 2001 Dec;44(4):750-68. doi: 10.1097/00003081-200112000-00012. No abstract available. PubMed 11600855 ↗
  • Akcan E, Polat S. Comparative Effect of the Smells of Amniotic Fluid, Breast Milk, and Lavender on Newborns' Pain During Heel Lance. Breastfeed Med. 2016 Aug;11(6):309-314. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2015.0174. Epub 2016 Jun 17. PubMed 27315487 ↗
  • Vaziri F, Khosropoor M, Hidari M, Pourahmad S, Morshed Behbahani B, Saki F. The Effect of Aromatherapy by Lavender Oil on Infant Vaccination Pain: a Double Blind Randomized Controlled Trial. J Caring Sci. 2019 Mar 1;8(1):17-21. doi: 10.15171/jcs.2019.003. eCollection 2019 Mar. PubMed 30915309 ↗
  • Maya-Enero S, Perez-Perez M, Ruiz-Guzman L, Duran-Jorda X, Lopez-Vilchez MA. Prevalence of neonatal ankyloglossia in a tertiary care hospital in Spain: a transversal cross-sectional study. Eur J Pediatr. 2021 Mar;180(3):751-757. doi: 10.1007/s00431-020-03781-7. Epub 2020 Aug 15. PubMed 32803423 ↗
  • Cetinkaya B, Basbakkal Z. The effectiveness of aromatherapy massage using lavender oil as a treatment for infantile colic. Int J Nurs Pract. 2012 Apr;18(2):164-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-172X.2012.02015.x. PubMed 22435980 ↗
  • Field T, Field T, Cullen C, Largie S, Diego M, Schanberg S, Kuhn C. Lavender bath oil reduces stress and crying and enhances sleep in very young infants. Early Hum Dev. 2008 Jun;84(6):399-401. doi: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2007.10.008. Epub 2007 Nov 28. PubMed 18053656 ↗
  • Lawrence J, Alcock D, McGrath P, Kay J, MacMurray SB, Dulberg C. The development of a tool to assess neonatal pain. Neonatal Netw. 1993 Sep;12(6):59-66. PubMed 8413140 ↗
  • Lopez V, Nielsen B, Solas M, Ramirez MJ, Jager AK. Exploring Pharmacological Mechanisms of Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) Essential Oil on Central Nervous System Targets. Front Pharmacol. 2017 May 19;8:280. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2017.00280. eCollection 2017. PubMed 28579958 ↗
  • Habanananda T. Non-pharmacological pain relief in labour. J Med Assoc Thai. 2004 Oct;87 Suppl 3:S194-202. PubMed 21213523 ↗
  • Goubet N, Rattaz C, Pierrat V, Bullinger A, Lequien P. Olfactory experience mediates response to pain in preterm newborns. Dev Psychobiol. 2003 Mar;42(2):171-80. doi: 10.1002/dev.10085. PubMed 12555281 ↗
  • Sadathosseini AS, Negarandeh R, Movahedi Z. The effect of a familiar scent on the behavioral and physiological pain responses in neonates. Pain Manag Nurs. 2013 Dec;14(4):e196-e203. doi: 10.1016/j.pmn.2011.10.003. Epub 2012 Feb 28. PubMed 24315273 ↗
  • Mikami-Saito Y, Maekawa M, Wada Y, Kanno T, Kurihara A, Sato Y, Yamamoto T, Arai-Ichinoi N, Kure S. Essential oils can cause false-positive results of medium-chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency. Mol Genet Metab Rep. 2020 Nov 5;25:100674. doi: 10.1016/j.ymgmr.2020.100674. eCollection 2020 Dec. PubMed 33204637 ↗
  • Maya-Enero S, Fabregas-Mitjans M, Llufriu-Marques RM, Candel-Pau J, Garcia-Garcia J, Lopez-Vilchez MA. Comparison of the analgesic effect of inhaled lavender vs vanilla essential oil for neonatal frenotomy: a randomized clinical trial (NCT04867824). Eur J Pediatr. 2022 Nov;181(11):3923-3929. doi: 10.1007/s00431-022-04608-3. Epub 2022 Sep 8. PubMed 36076107 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Apr 30, 2021, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04867824
Lead sponsor
Parc de Salut Mar
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Apr 30, 2021
Start date
May 10, 2021 (estimated)
Primary completion
Dec 9, 2021 (estimated)
Completion
Dec 31, 2021 (estimated)
Last update
Apr 30, 2021

Study contacts

Silvia Maya-Enero, Ph.D., M.D.
Contact
62175@parcdesalutmar.cat
+34 93 248 3145
Silvia Maya-Enero, Ph.D., M.D.
principal investigator · Hospital del Mar

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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