Evaluating the pain, kinesiophobia, functioning, and quality of life of individuals wear casts

Aim: The purpose of the study was to evaluate the discomfort, kinesiophobia, functioning, and quality of life of those wearing plaster casts. Materials and Methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive study. The study included 203 patients who had previously been plaster cast, who came for control and whose cast was to be removed. Data was collected using the Tampa Kinesiophobia Scale (TKS), Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and SF-12 scales. Results: The average age of the patients in the study was 36.35±11.75 years and 54.7% of them were men. It was found that 58.6% of the people were applied a plaster cast due to a fall, the average duration of the plaster cast was 25.13±2.54 days, and 88.2% experienced pain and 76.4% itching due to the plaster cast. According to the scales, the average scores of the participants were as follows: VAS-rest: 3.22±1.34, VAS-activity: 6.18±1.55, LEFS: 36.05±6.30, and TKS: 41.59±1.96. The SF-12 physical and mental summary scores were 34.95±5.90 and 43.64±5.35, respectively. A significant difference was determined between the TKS and LEFS scores of the individuals and some sociodemographic characteristics (p<0.05). Furthermore, there was a significant difference between itching and VAS-resting pain intensity. Positively weak between LEFS and SF-12 physical summary score, positively high between VAS-rest pain and VAS-activity pain severity a moderate level of positive correlation was determined (p<0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of the study, it was determined that the VAS-resting pain intensity was light, the VAS-activity pain intensity was moderate, the kinesiophobia levels were high, the lower extremity functional function and the physical dimension of the quality of life were low. Key words: Fracture, Cast, Quality of Life, Kinesiophobia, Functionality, Pain.