The Effect of Open Lumen Nasal Splint Tampons on Patient's Anxiety

Background: Removal of the tampons after nasal surgeries in the postoperative period causes stress and anxiety in the patients. This affects the results of the surgery and the recovery of the patient. In recent years, we have been using tampons that can be removed more easily. Therefore, we wanted to investigate the effects of these tampons on the patient. Our study is a prospective survey study. A total of 43 patients who underwent surgery in our clinic and had bilateral nasal packing were included in the study. "Beck Anxiety Scale" was used in the study. The patients were surveyed twice, one week before the operation and just before the tampon removal. The differences between the two questionnaires were analyzed statistically. Results: The mean age of 43 patients was 24 years, 27 (62.8%) men and 16 (37.2%) women. The tampons of 19 (44.2%) patients were removed on the postoperative 2nd day, 16 (37.2%) patients on the 3rd day, and 8 (18.6%) patients on the 7th day. "Beck Anxiety Scale" preoperative mean score was 5 (normal), and the mean before tampon withdrawal was 10 (Mild Anxiety). A statistically significant increase was observed in the mean anxiety scores before tampon withdrawal. (p < 0.001). Conclusion: This study shows that despite using nasal split tampons, tampon removal still causes anxiety in patients.