Preoperative Anxiety and Postoperative Pain in Pediatric Burn Patients and Their Correlation Analysis

The incidence and mortality rates of burns have decreased dramatically with the advancement of medical technology; however, it is still challenging.

This study aimed to investigate the status of preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain in pediatric burn patients and analyze the correlation between preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain.

This cross-sectional study was conducted on pediatric burn patients who underwent burn surgery under general anesthesia in Qinghai Provincial People's Hospital, Xining, China, from October 2020 to August 2021. For the evaluation of postoperative pain, the patients were tested at the post-anesthesia care unit, 2 h, 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h after surgery, and burn time before operation, burn location, burn area, and burn depth were assessed. Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability Behavioral Tool, and Facial Expression Pain Scale were used to evaluate the pain of the children, and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale were used to evaluate the anxiety of the children. The correlation was used to analyze the effect of preoperative anxiety on postoperative pain in burned children.

In total, 108 pediatric patients were included in this study. Preoperative anxiety and severe anxiety accounted for more than 50% of burned children. Moreover, there was a statistically significant difference between 1-3-year-old and 4-12-year-old children in terms of preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain. Parental trait anxiety, showed that each influencing factor has a significant influence on postoperative pain in children (P<0.05). Based on the analysis of the correlation between preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain in children with burns, preoperative anxiety in children aged 1-3 years had a significant impact on postoperative pain in children. Moreover, the correlation analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between anxiety score and postoperative pain in children with burns (r=0.479, P=0.001).

Incidence rate of preoperative anxiety in pediatric burn patients is high. Besides, the postoperative pain scores are different in various age groups. In addition, there is a positive correlation between preoperative anxiety and postoperative pain in pediatric burn patients; accordingly, the higher the anxiety score of the patient, the more intense their postoperative pain.