Relationship between Preoperative Anxiety and Postoperative Pain among Patients undergoing Elective Surgery in Tertiary Care Center

Introduction: Preoperative anxiety refers to a patient’s unpleasant state of worry before surgery. Appropriate postoperative pain management benefits patients by reducing postoperative cognitive impairment, improving quality of life, and lowering the risk of chronic postsurgical pain. The aim of this study was to identify the relationship between preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain among patients undergoing elective surgery. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among patients undergoing elective surgery in the surgical ward of Nepal Armed Police Force Hospital from July to September 2024. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Review Committee (Reference number: NAPFH-006/2024) of Nepal Armed Police Force Hospital .This ex post facto study was conducted among 109 respondents using a non-probability purposive sampling technique. Data were collected via self-administered standard semi-structured questionnaires (Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Numerical Pain Rating scale). Descriptive statistics including frequency, percentage, and mean were used for data analysis. Chi-square test and logistic regression were performed to identify associations between preoperative anxiety and socio demographic variables. Results: Out of 109 respondents, 86 (78.90%) had preoperative anxiety. Preoperative anxiety showed a significant association with postoperative pain at 2 hours after surgery. Similarly, a significant relationship was also found between age and type of anesthesia during the 6-hour and 24-hour postoperative periods respectively. Conclusions: The study found that the majority of patients experienced preoperative anxiety. A relationship between preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain was observed. It showed that preoperative anxiety had a significant relationship in the immediate postoperative period. Further dimensions like preoperative medications, postoperative medications and care could be added to make the study more effective.