Aim. This study was conducted to examine the effect of deep and slow breathing on pain and pain outcomes during arterial sheath removal after undergoing coronary angioplasty.

Background. During the last 30 years, coronary angioplasty has been the most common method for management of coronary artery stenosis. Lack of control or treatment of the pain caused by arterial sheath removal may have some consequences, most notably increased heart rate and blood pressure in patients.

Method. This is a clinical trial study conducted on 60 patients undergoing coronary angioplasty, hospitalized between April and August 2015 in the catheterization laboratory of Shariati hospital, Tehran, Iran. Patients were divided into two groups using random number table. The intervention was slow, deep breathing techniques by inhale and exhale ratio of 4 to 6. Data were analyzed using SPSS.

Findings. Immediately and 5 minutes after sheath removal, the average pain score in the intervention group  was significantly lower rather than control group (P<0.05). There was no statistically significant difference between groups in terms of blood pressure and heart rate average. The average number of vasovagal attack was significantly different between the groups. The average number of vascular complications was not significantly different between intervention and control group.

Conclusion. The use of slow and deep breathing and relaxation technique is effective on pain management and the incidence of vasovagal attacks after arterial sheath removal, and can be used as an easy and safe method to decrease patients’ discontent caused by pain.