Abstract

QUINTERO, Andrea et al. Preoperative anxiety: a problem affecting all of us. rev. colomb. cir. [online]. 2017, vol.32, n.2, pp.115-120. ISSN 2011-7582.  https://doi.org/10.30944/20117582.15.

Background. Anxiety is a mental state that leads people to reactions of discomfort, anguish, fear, preoccupation or excitation. Surgical interventions trigger a series of mental, emotional and physical responses that can increase the levels of anxiety to the point of affecting the recovery of the patients following surgery. The objective of this study was to determine the state of anxiety of patients undergoing cholecystectomy and the association of the level of anxiety with the patient's gender, the history of previous surgical interventions and the time of hospital stay previous to the scheduled procedure. Patients and methods. Beck anxiety inventory scale was applied in 21 patients in whom laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed in the period August 1st to December 31st, 2015. Interventional and emotional stabilization techniques were applied, and we compared the anxiety levels regarding gender, presence or absence of previous surgical interventions and the performance of the operation before or after 24 hour hospital admission. Results. Twenty one patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy were included, with ages ranging from 23 to 93 years. Thirteen were male and eight female. All patients presented some degree of anxiety: mild 7, moderate 11, and severe 3. Higher levels of anxiety were more frequent in males, with no statistically significant difference (10 vs. 4 patients respectively, p = 0.3458). Patients who had history of previous surgery exhibited lower levels of anxiety than the patients without such history (p = 0.0071). Nine patients had hospital stays longer than 24 hours before surgery and in 12 patients were operated on the same day of admission, with no statistically significant difference in the level of anxiety. Conclusions. These results show that there was no association between the level of anxiety and gender, or the time of hospital stay prior to the operation, while the history of previous surgery is associated lower levels of anxiety. Pre and postoperative psychological intervention could identify factors that generate anxiety, improve the emotional adaptation before and after the procedure, and generate ample spaces to complement information and clear doubts regarding the surgical procedure.

Keywords : Anxiety; general surgery; cholecystectomy; laparoscopic; behavioral medicine; psychology.

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