Psychological variables as predictors of the length of post-operative hospitalization

Neuroticism in Relation to Recovery and Persisting Pain after Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy

“…The only preoperative factor that seems predictive of poor outcome after cholecystectomy was neuroticism, as measured by the Psychic Vulnerability Scale (2). Although this finding to some extent supports a previous study by Taenzer et al (6), a more recent study by Boeke et al (7) showed no association between preoperative personality characteristics and postoperative recovery. The appearance of the postcholecystectomy syndrome seems independent of whether the operation is laparoscopic or open (5).…”

Preoperative anxiety about spinal surgery under general anesthesia

“…Preoperative anxiety is an unpleasant emotion and may even cause patients to avoid a planned surgery [24]. A high preoperative anxiety state may lead to adverse psychological and physiological outcomes [3]. In addition, increased preoperative anxiety has been suggested to correlate with increased postoperative pain, increased postoperative analgesic requirements, and prolonged recovery and hospital stay [1,2,7].…”

“…The purposes of this study were (1) to determine how many patients have preoperative anxiety about spinal surgery and general anesthesia, (2) to evaluate the level of anxiety, (3) to identify patient factors potentially associated with the level of anxiety, and (4) to describe the characteristics of the anxiety that patients experience during the perioperative period.…”

Trait Anxiety Predicts Outcome 6 Weeks After Cholecystectomy. A Prospective Follow-Up Study

“…Findings from the current study suggest that trait anxiety may be a predictor of long-term outcomes after cholecystectomy. Previous studies on trait anxiety did not provide strong support for an impact on post-cholecystectomy outcomes [15, 19, 20]. These studies generated inconsistent findings, were based on small populations, and focussed on short-term post-cholecystectomy outcomes (<5 days post-operatively) only.…”

“…Trait anxiety is defined as a relatively stable individual difference in the tendency to react with heightened anxiety to threatening situations [16]. The impact of trait anxiety on post-cholecystectomy recovery is indistinct [15, 18–20], as studies investigated small populations [15, 18, 20] and focussed on the first 5 days after cholecystectomy only. Evidence of the impact of trait anxiety on post-cholecystectomy outcome is flawed as studies used different procedures and outcome variables, and controlled for different pre- and postoperative factors.…”