Perioperative Anxiety Risk Factors in Parents of Children Undergoing Thoracic Surgery

According to the literature, parents of children undergoing various types of surgical procedures are accompanied by high levels of anxiety. It was found that the level of anxiety is higher in female parents and is related to the child's age, fear of postoperative pain in children, the scope of information about the course of surgery and anesthesia, and potential complications that may occur during and after the child's operation. Parental anxiety correlates positively with child anxiety. High levels of anxiety in children can lead to many undesirable clinical, psychological and behavioral symptoms during hospitalization (delirium, increased postoperative pain, greater need for analgesia) and after discharge from the hospital (separation anxiety, sleep disorders, aggression, enuresis).

• Diagnostic Test (Diagnostic test): Evaluation of perioperative anxiety in parents of children undergoing thoracic surgery using standardized tests: The Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale (APAIS), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI).

Primary outcomes

• Parents' anxiety and information requirement in the preoperative phase [before surgery]: The Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale (APAIS) consists of six items. The items are rated on a five point Likert scale with the end poles "not at all" (1) and "extremely" (5). It represents the two scales anxiety (Item 1, 2, 4 and 5) and need-for-information (Items 3 and 6). A total value is calculated by adding up the two scales anxiety and need-for-information. A higher score means higher preoperative anxiety and a greater need for information.
• Parents' anxiety state [before surgery, before discharge from the hospital]: Anxiety was determined with a Polish version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; range: 20-80 pts). The instrument consisting of two separate 20-item scales measuring state and trait anxiety. The results will be expressed as sten scores, from 1-10 (1-4 = low level of anxiety, 5-6 = moderate level of anxiety, >7 = high level of anxiety).

Secondary outcomes

• Parents' satisfaction [up to discharge from the hospital]: Satisfaction is assessed on a five-point scale, where 1 means the lowest satisfaction and 5 the highest.
• Socio-demographic factors [perioperative period]: Socio-demographic variables include: age, sex, education, marital status, income, place of residence, number of children, number of operations/hospitalizations of the child, scope of information obtained before the operation, postoperative pain and complication in a child

Sex: All, ages: 18 Years to any

Inclusion Criteria:

* parent of child <18 years
* parent of child undergoing thoracic surgery
* parent of child with intravenous or epidural postoperative analgesia
* parent of child with 1-3 score according to the American Society of Anesthesiologists

Exclusion Criteria:

* a parent of a nationality other than Polish
* difficult communication with parent
* parent of a child undergoing oncological treatment
* parent of a child without chest drainage
* lack of parental consent.

• Lucyna Tomaszek, PhD, Principal investigator, National Institute for Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases, Poland