Effect of vibration and cold application on chest tube removal pain and anxiety after coronary artery bypass graft surgery

Removal of chest tubes after coronary artery bypass graft surgery causes severe pain and anxiety, which can negatively affect the recovery process. In this context, the integration of non-pharmacological interventions into nursing care is an important requirement in multidisciplinary pain and anxiety management. This study was conducted with a single-blind randomized controlled experimental design to determine the effects of vibration and a combination of vibration and cold application on the pain and anxiety associated with chest tube removal after coronary artery bypass graft surgery. The study population consisted of patients admitted to a Cardiovascular Surgery Training and Research Hospital between September 2024 and June 2025. The sample consisted of 93 patients who met the research criteria. Patients who agreed to participate in the study were randomly assigned to the vibration group (n=31), the vibration and cold application group (n=31), and the control group (n=31). The pain levels of the patients were assessed using the Visual Analog Scale, and anxiety levels were assessed using the State Anxiety Inventory (STAI-I). The measurements were taken a total of six times: twice before chest tube removal, once during removal, and three times after removal. The descriptive and clinical characteristics of the participating patients were similar (p>0.05). The findings revealed that vibration therapy was significantly effective in reducing pain and anxiety levels associated with chest tube removal (p<0.001). The intervention, which included cold therapy combined with vibration, not only reduced pain and anxiety levels but also contributed to a more stable course of vital signs. The vibration group scored higher in satisfaction with the intervention (p=0.006). In conclusion, vibration therapy is an effective, safe, and feasible nursing intervention for reducing pain and anxiety associated with chest tube removal. Adding cold therapy to vibration strengthened the effectiveness of the intervention; the high effectiveness of vibration alone in reducing pain and anxiety, and the higher levels of intervention satisfaction, showed that it is a strong intervention option. In this regard, it is recommended that vibration application be integrated into nursing care in the management of pain and anxiety associated with the removal of chest tubes after coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and that nurses implement an intervention that adds cold application to vibration under appropriate clinical conditions to increase the effectiveness of the application.