The effect of preoperative pain anxiety on postoperative recovery

This thesis study was conducted as a descriptive, correlational, and prospective study to examine the effects of preoperative fear of pain on postoperative recovery. The study was conducted between August 20, 2024, and December 25, 2024, on 200 patients hospitalized in the adult surgical clinics of two separate public hospitals in the Eastern Anatolia Region. Data were collected using the researcher-developed Patient Identification Form, Fear of Pain Scale, Postoperative Recovery Index, Quality of Recovery-40 Patient Survey, and Visual Comparison Scale. The total Fear of Pain Scale score was 94.09±18.2. Participants were found to have a high fear of severe pain and a secondary fear of medical pain. The overall mean score on the first postoperative day, assessed within the scope of the Postoperative Recovery Index, was found to be 2.31±0.70, and difficulty with physical recovery was identified as the most significant. Additionally, this study found a positive and significant correlation between fear of pain and postoperative recovery on day 1 (r = 0.372; p < 0.01) and day 15 (r = 0.139; p = 0.049). A negative and significant correlation was observed between fear of pain and quality of recovery on day 1 postoperatively (r = -0.278; p < 0.01). These findings suggest that as patients' fear of pain increases, their postoperative recovery process is negatively affected, and their quality of recovery deteriorates. Consequently, it was determined that fear of pain experienced before surgery has a significant impact on postoperative recovery.