Assessment of Preoperative and Postoperative Anxiety among Elective Major Surgery Patients in a Tertiary Hospital in Nigeria.

BACKGROUND Anxiety is an unpleasant emotional experience that involves feelings of tension, apprehension, nervousness and high autonomic activity. Few studies have been conducted in Nigeria on anxiety levels among patient undergoing surgical operation. The aim of this study is to assess preoperative and postoperative anxiety level of patients and identify factors that may influence patient's preoperative anxiety level. METHODS Fifty one adult patients scheduled for elective surgery in a tertiary public hospital in Nigeria were assessed a day before and after their surgery using a questionnaire with socio-demographic and clinical details. Anxiety was assessed with the state portion of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and different factors responsible for their anxiety were selected from a list. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 17. RESULT Twenty-six patients (51.0%) had significant preoperative anxiety while 8 (15.7%) had significant postoperative anxiety. The patients preoperative mean anxiety score of STAI (42.72 ± 9.84) was statistically significantly higher than their postoperative mean anxiety score (37.73 ± 8.44; p = .001). In 10 items of STAI, there were significant differences between the preoperative and postoperative mean STAI scores. Fear of complications and result of operation were the most common factors responsible for preoperative anxiety while few patients were anxious about nil per mouth, getting stuck with needle and harm from doctor/nurse mistake. CONCLUSION The prevalence of preoperative anxiety is high in Nigerian surgical patients. Psychological preparation and provision of correct information that addresses identified factors may help in reducing preoperative anxiety.