Kontakt 2015, 17(4):e201-e205 | DOI: 10.1016/j.kontakt.2015.10.005

Predictors of preoperative anxiety in surgical patientsNursing - Original article

Andrea Solgajová^a,*, Tomáš Sollár^b, Dana Zrubcová^a, Gabriela Vörösová^a

^a Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre, Fakulta sociálnych vied a zdravotníctva, Katedra ošetrovateľstva, Nitra, Slovenská republika

^b Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre, Fakulta sociálnych vied a zdravotníctva, Ústav aplikovanej psychológie, Nitra, Slovenská republika

In clinical practice for diagnosis of anxiety it is very useful to know various predictors which increase the risk of preoperative anxiety in patients. The aim of the study is to identify which predictors (gender, age, type of surgery, type of anaesthesia, previous experience with surgery, time before surgery, and medical diagnosis) are significant predictors of preoperative anxiety.
A total of 278 respondents with medical diagnoses requiring abdominal surgery, aged between 18 and 86 years (AM = 46.04; SD = 16.5) participated in the study. To assess anxiety in the patients we used the scale Anxiety Level-12 which was designed by modification of the measurement tool Anxiety Level from the Nursing Outcomes Classification (NOC) and had been validated in the conditions of the Slovak Republic. Anxiety assessment in the patients was carried out before their surgeries in various times (AM = 8 h; SD = 5; Mdn = 6.50). The research was approved by the Ethics Committee. The software SPSS 22.0, multiple linear regression analysis, was used for the statistical data analysis.
Gender, type of surgery, type of anaesthesia, and time before surgery are significant predictors of preoperative anxiety; previous experience with surgery, age, and medical diagnosis are non-significant predictors.
Knowing the predictors of preoperative anxiety would help nurses identify at-risk patients, thus early implement effective intervention strategies to reduce it and ensure smooth surgery and postoperative period.

Keywords: stress; adaptation; anxiety; preoperational period; nursing diagnosis

Received: July 16, 2015; Accepted: October 12, 2015; Published: November 20, 2015  Show citation