Factors associated with postoperative pain among patients with upper limb fracture fixation surgery at Nghe An Trauma and Orthopedics hospital

Objective: This study aimed to identify some factors associated with postoperative pain in patients undergoing upper limb fracture fixation surgery at Nghe An Trauma and Orthopedics Hospital in 2024. Participants and methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted on 150 patients who underwent upper limb fracture fixation surgery at the Upper Limb Department, Nghe An Trauma and Orthopedics Hospital, from April to June 2024. The Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) was used to assess postoperative pain levels. Anxiety levels were measured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale-Anxiety Subscale (HADS-A). Social support was evaluated using the ENRICHD Social Support Instrument (ESSI). Data were analyzed using SPSS 22.0. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize patient characteristics. Independent t-test was applied to compare differences between groups. Additionally, Pearson correlation analysis examined linear relationships between variables. The statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results: The proportion of male and female participants was 67.3% and 32.7%, respectively. The mean patient age was 45.7 ± 15.8 years, ranging from 18 to 77 years. A majority of patients (66.7%) had a high school education. Factors significantly associated with postoperative pain included surgical incision length, gender, duration of surgery, anxiety levels, and social support (p < 0.05) at 24, 48, and 72 hours postoperatively. Conclusion: Minimizing postoperative pain requires a multidisciplinary approach, including optimizing surgical techniques, implementing multimodal analgesia strategies, and enhancing psychological support. These measures are essential for reducing tissue trauma, improving pain management, and enhancing the quality of life for postoperative patients.