Evaluation of the relationship between perioperative care quality and postoperative pain, kinesiophobia, and anxiety in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty

This study was conducted as prospective descriptive-correlational research with the aim of examining the relationship between the quality of perioperative care and kinesiophobia, pain, and anxiety in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty. The study was carried out with 279 patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty at the Orthopedics and Traumatology Clinic of a state hospital in Ankara between October 22, 2023, and April 22, 2024. Data were collected using the Patient Introductory Features Form, the Quality of Perioperative Nursing Care Scale, the Tampa Scale for Kinesiophobia, the Visual Analog Scale, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and the Oxford Knee Score. One-way analysis of variance, independent groups t-test, and Pearson correlation analysis were used to analyze the data. Among the patients included in the study, 86% were women, and the mean age was 68.09±6.98. The results of the study indicated that the perceived quality of perioperative nursing care was high (124.14±14.14). Patients were found to have moderate levels of kinesiophobia (38.75±6.72) and anxiety (37.66±9.44) in the early postoperative period. The mean pain score was highest on the day of the operation (VAS=5.80±1.90) and gradually decreased on the first and second postoperative days. A statistically significant relationship was found between the average score of quality perioperative nursing care and postoperative kinesiophobia, anxiety, and pain scores (p<0.05). An increase in the quality of perioperative nursing care resulted in a decrease in kinesiophobia, anxiety, and pain levels in the early postoperative period. It is thought that providing high-quality nursing care during the perioperative period to patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty will facilitate the management of kinesiophobia, anxiety, and pain, thereby contributing to improved postoperative patient outcomes and functional status.