Drug patient information leaflets in anaesthesia: effect on anxiety and patient satisfaction

• Published in: British journal of anaesthesia : BJA Vol. 92; no. 6; pp. 854 - 858
• Main Authors: Oldman, M., Moore, D., Collins, S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01.06.2004; Oxford University Press; Oxford Publishing Limited (England)
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; anaesthesia; Anesthesia; Anesthesia - psychology; Anesthesia. Intensive care medicine. Transfusions. Cell therapy and gene therapy; Anesthetics, Intravenous - adverse effects; Anxiety; Anxiety - etiology; anxiety scale; Biological and medical sciences; complications; complications, anxiety; education; education, patient; Female; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous; monitoring; monitoring, anxiety scale; patient; Patient Education as Topic - methods; Patient Satisfaction; Piperidines - adverse effects; Propofol - adverse effects; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Surveys and Questionnaires; monitoring, anxiety scale; complications, anxiety; education, patient; anaesthesia; anaesthesia; complications, anxiety; education, patient; monitoring, anxiety scale; Human; Agonist; Attitude; anaesthesia; complications; Visual analogue scale; μ Opioid receptor; Physician; Opiates; Patient; Narcotic analgesic; Information; Remifentanil; anxiety scale; General anesthetic; patient; monitoring; Complication; Anxiety; Propofol; Preoperative; Monitoring; anxiety; education
• ISSN: 0007-0912; 1471-6771
• DOI: 10.1093/bja/aeh162

Patient information leaflets are produced for all new drugs, including anaesthetic drugs that are licensed solely for physician administration. The effect of this information on patients’ satisfaction and anxiety has not been investigated previously. Eighty‐five patients were allocated randomly to receive a standard information leaflet about anaesthesia (Group 1) or the standard leaflet plus the manufacturers’ patient information leaflets for propofol and remifentanil (Group 2). Anxiety was assessed using the state trait anxiety index (STAI) and a visual analogue scale (VAS) for anxiety before and after this information had been read. Patients’ attitudes to this information were assessed by a short questionnaire. There was no significant difference in STAI or VAS scores for anxiety between the two groups before or after the information leaflets. Significantly more patients who received drug patient information leaflets felt that they had received too much information (0% Group 1 vs 18% Group 2, P=0.003). More than 64% of patients in both groups said that they would not wish to receive detailed anaesthetic drug information. There was a correlation between the STAI and the VAS scores for anxiety (R=0.8). A minority of patients (up to 36%) wish to receive detailed anaesthetic drug information before anaesthesia. Manufacturers’ drug patient information leaflets do not alter preoperative anxiety and may be safely issued to patients requesting such information.