Efficacy of Nonpharmacological Interventions in Acute Postoperative Pain of Patients with Lung Cancer Undergoing Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery: A Protocol for Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis

Background: Acute postoperative pain is one of the most common and painful complications of lung cancer patients undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, which seriously affects the health and quality of life of patients. Although using medication for analgesia is the standard, their risk of adverse events still cannot be ignored. Non-pharmacological interventions are increasingly studied, but their relative efficacy in a given population remains unclear. The purpose of this study protocol is to compare the efficacy of non-pharmacological interventions in acute postoperative pain of patients with lung cancer undergoing video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. Methods: We will search ten electronic databases, mainly including CNKI, VIP, WanFang, PubMed, Web of Science, MEDLINE, Scopus, CINAHL, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) from their inception to August 2025. We will select randomized controlled trials to evaluate the efficacy of non-pharmacological interventions on acute postoperative pain. Our primary outcome is intensity of acute postoperative pain at 24 hours. Secondary outcomes include analgesic use, patient satisfaction and adverse events. Then, standard network meta-analysis (NMA) will be conducted using Stata V.17.0. Results: We hope that the study will identify the most effective non-pharmacological interventions to clarify relative efficacy through direct and indirect comparisons via NMA. Conclusion: Our findings will potentially provide evidence-based guidance for acute pain management in lung cancer patients and promote optimal use of non-pharmacological interventions to improve recovery patient quality of life and reduce medication risk. Keywords: acute postoperative pain, lung cancer, systematic review