Effect of Educational Intervention on Reducing Anxiety in Patients with Knee Arthroplasty: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Any surgery could be an anxiety-provoking event. A high level of preoperative anxiety may change the result of surgery. This study aimed to determine the effects of training intervention on anxiety in patients undergoing knee replacement.

Materials & Methods:

 This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 90 patients who were candidates for knee joint replacement surgery in teaching hospitals of Bojnord city in North khorasan Province in 2021. Patients were enrolled in three 90-minute sessions. In the first two sessions, the surgeon informed the patients about the disease, treatment approaches, surgery, and anesthesia, and in the last session, the clinical psychologist instructed them on how to control and deal with anxiety. Anxiety was assessed before, immediately after the intervention, and one day before surgery.

The mean scores of state anxiety before, immediately after the intervention, and one day before surgery were 44.38±10.76, 41.49±9.41, and 36.19±6.40, respectively. Moreover, the mean scores of trait anxiety before, immediately after the intervention, and one day before surgery were 43.87±10.81, 41.27±8.39, and 38.83±6.56, respectively, which show the effectiveness of the intervention in controlling patients' anxiety (p<0.05).

Informing the patients about their disease and how to deal with it and giving awareness about the effectiveness of the operation by the surgeon and the clinical psychologist is effective in controlling and reducing anxiety.