Preoperative psychological preparation appears to improve postoperative outcomes such as anxiety, depression, and length of stay after cardiac surgery, although overall evidence quality remains low.
Does preoperative psychological preparation improve postoperative outcomes in patients undergoing cardiac surgery?
Preoperative psychological preparation may improve postoperative outcomes in cardiac surgery patients, but further high-quality studies are needed.
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review the current state of preoperative psychological preparation to improve outcomes after cardiac surgery. RECENT FINDINGS: Preoperative psychosocial factors are associated with short- and long-term outcomes after cardiac surgery. There are several approaches to optimize patients' preoperative psychological status with promising effects on postoperative outcomes (e.g., less complications, improved quality of life). Preoperative psychological preparation often aims to improve patients' knowledge or social support and to modify and optimize expectations and illness beliefs. Preoperative psychological preparation is gaining importance for cardiac surgery. However, patients' psychological status still does not get as much attention as it deserves. Preoperative psychological preparation seems to have positive effects on postoperative outcomes. Since overall evidence is still weak, further studies are warranted to understand which intervention works best for whom and why.
Salzmann et al. (Sat,) conducted a review in Cardiac surgery. Preoperative psychological preparation was evaluated. Preoperative psychological preparation appears to improve postoperative outcomes such as anxiety, depression, and length of stay after cardiac surgery, although overall evidence quality remains low.