Investigation of the use of complementary therapies in cardiovascular surgery patients: a cross-sectional study

Aims: This study aims to analyse the use of complementary therapies in cardiovascular surgery patients. Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted between March 2022 and March 2023 in the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery of a university hospital in İzmir. The study sample consisted of 165 patients who had undergone cardiovascular surgery. The ‘Sociodemographic and Descriptive Characteristics of Patients Form’ and ‘Complementary Treatment Use Characteristics of Patients Form’ were used to collect the data. Results: It was determined that 31.5% of cardiovascular surgery patients used complementary therapies and 40.4% of them used them in the preoperative period. Among nutrition therapies, the most frequently used practices in the preoperative period were multivitamins (7.9%), vitamin C (6.7%), vitamin E (3.6%), garlic (3.6%), and benecol (3.0%). In the postoperative period, the most commonly used nutrition therapies were Benecol (4.8%), vitamin C (1.2%), fish oil (0.6%), multivitamins (0.6%), and garlic (0.6%). Among physical therapies, massage was the most frequently used method in both the preoperative (1.8%) and postoperative period (1.2%). Within psychological therapies, stress management (1.8%) and relaxation (1.8%) were the most commonly used methods in the postoperative period. Psycho-physical therapies such as yoga and tai chi were not used in either the preoperative or postoperative period. Conclusion: It was found that slightly less than half of the cardiovascular surgery patients used complementary treatment methods. It was determined that patients who used complementary therapies preferred these methods predominantly in the preoperative period and in the form of nutrition therapies. However, considering that this situation may cause possible complications and drug interactions, it is recommended that the use of complementary therapy should be assessed in detail in the preoperative period.