Anaesthesia Induction in Children: A Psychological Evaluation of the Efficiency of Parents' Presence

A parent in the operating theater: a survey of attitudes

“…Messeri [6] demonstrated that there was a significantly higher rate of anxiety in children separated from their parents before the operating room. Maternal presence was particularly important to the child and is thought to be even more helpful if the parent has a low trait anxiety [7].…”

Psycho-educational preparation of children for anaesthesia: A review of intervention methods

“…According to the authors, premedication with midazolam was significantly more effective in reducing CPA. In subsequent research, Kain, Mayes [15] found that combining midazolam with PP was not better at reducing CPA than midazolam alone, while Messeri, Caprilli [63] found that adding midazolam to PP wasn't better at reducing CPA than PP alone. Just to make matters even less clear Arai, Ito [62] found that PP at anaesthesia induction enhances the effects of midazolam on child behaviour at emergence from anaesthesia.…”

“…Some studies have found that children benefit from PP (e.g. [63,64]), although that benefit was only with specific cohorts, i.e., children older than 4 years, children who have a low baseline activity level as assessed by temperament, and children with parents who had a low trait anxiety (e.g [3]). Other studies have found that PP does not positively affect child's anxiety (e.g.…”

“…Additionally, the high level of preoperative parental anxiety was reflected in the child's negative behaviour and fears one week after operation. The presence of calm parents, according to Bevan, Johnston [65], Palermo, Tripi [61] and Wright, Stewart [66], seems to have no impact on children's anxiety, while Messeri, Caprilli [63] and Kain, Caldwell-Andrews [64] found PP to be to be beneficial for the child.…”

Importance of psychological intervention for the recovery of children submitted to elective surgery

“…This can intensify anxiety, especially in parents who feel responsible for maintaining the well-being of their children [1,2,[4][5][6][7][8]. This is likely to occur when the adult has difficulty in understanding the context of the child's hospital admission and the possibility of loss, injury, or separation from loved ones [9][10][11][12].…”