Background and Purpose: Anxiety and sleep disorders are among the most common complications of pregnancy that can provide a breeding ground for many health disorders during this period. Rose aromatherapy is a traditional medicine treatment modality that has been declared effective in relieving pain, reducing anxiety, eliminating insomnia and promoting health during pregnancy. It does not have any reported unpleasant side effects and can therefore be used along with standard treatments to manage pregnancy problems.

Materials and Methods: This study was a clinical trial with pre-test-post-test design. Using random cluster sampling method, 124 pregnant women referring to 9 health centers of Abhar urban community in Zanjan were selected. A cotton cloth with 3 drops of rose extract was placed next to the pillow every night while sleeping for 2 weeks in the third trimester of pregnancy. The Spiel Berger Questionnaire was used to measure anxiety and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Questionnaire was used to measure sleep quality. Data were analyzed using appropriate software and tests.

Results: The mean scores of overt and covert anxiety in the experimental group decreased significantly with intervention compared with the control group and the mean changes in the scores of overt and covert anxiety after aromatherapy intervention in the control and experimental groups were significantly different (p<0.0001). Moreover, changes in sleep quality score were not the same in the experimental and control groups, with the experimental group having higher quality sleep (p<0.0001).

Conclusion: This study showed that aromatherapy with rose extract has a positive effect on reducing overt and covert anxiety and improving the quality of sleep in women in the third trimester of pregnancy. This fragrance is available, safe and well-accepted by pregnant women and their families.