The Influence of the Premedication Consult and Preparatory Information about Anesthesia on Anxiety among Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgery

The present study examines the impact of patients' subjective evaluation of the premedication consult and of preparatory information about anesthesia on preoperative anxiety among patients undergoing cardiac surgery ( N = 93). The preparatory information concerned a flyer that contained information about treatment options, risks of surgery and expected outcomes with respect to anesthesiology. The data did not support the beneficial effect of the information on patients' anxiety levels above the standard procedure in which patients were solely visited by their anesthesiologist for a premedication consult. Anxiety reduction was related, however, to the perceived quality of the premedication consult. The more positively the interaction with the anesthesiologist was evaluated, the stronger the patients' anxiety reduction. In addition, the moderating impact of monitoring/blunting on preoperative anxiety was examined. High levels of monitoring and low blunting were associated with stronger anxiety reduction, regardless of whether patients received additional preparatory information or solely an oral consult. The implications of these findings for clinical practice are discussed.