ESSENTIAL OILS FOR MANAGEMENT OF SYMPTOMS IN CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS

With therapeutic properties basedon their chemical composition,essential oils—extracts fromherbs, flowers, and other plantmaterials—have been used to treat symptoms and diseases for thousands of years. However, the term aromatherapy was not used until French chemist Gattefosse published a text in 1936.1 Clinical aromatherapy is defined as the use of essen-tial oils for therapeutic purposes that encompass mind, body, and spirit.2 Although aromatherapy is a newer technique in the United States, essential oils have long been part of nursing practice in countrie