Correlation and influencing factors of preoperative anxiety, postoperative pain, and delirium in elderly patients undergoing gastrointestinal cancer surgery

Abstract

Preoperative anxiety is a typical emotional issue among surgical patients. Studies have shown that preoperative anxiety affects patients on both a physiological and a psychological level [1]. Surgery and anesthesia are the main factors that contribute to preoperative anxiety. The incidence of preoperative anxiety in Chinese adults is 16.9%, and female gender and highly invasive surgery have been identified as risk factors for high preoperative anxiety [2]. Preoperative anxiety has been shown to play an important role in modulating postoperative pain [3,4,5,6]. The literature and research are based on the theory of a linear rather than curvilinear relationship between anxiety and pain, meaning that with increased anxiety there is an increase in pain [7].