The Influence of Preoperative Waiting Time on Anxiety and Pain Levels in Outpatient Surgery for Breast Diseases.

Objective: This study aims to examine the effects of different preoperative waiting times on anxiety and pain levels in patients undergoing outpatient surgery for breast diseases, providing insights for clinical interventions during the perioperative phase.

Methods: Patients who underwent outpatient surgery at a hospital breast center in Ningbo between January 2021 and December 2021 were selected. Their anxiety levels at the time when they entered the preoperative preparation room and when they ended the postoperative waiting period for the rapid frozen section procedure were assessed using the State Anxiety Inventory (S-AI) questionnaire, and their pain levels at the end of the postoperative waiting period were assessed using the short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire. The patients enrolled were divided into 3 groups according to the preoperative waiting time: <2 hours (T1 group), 2 to 4 hours (T2 group), and >4 hours (T3 group); there were 150 patients in each group, and the anxiety and pain levels were compared between the groups.

Results: At the time of entering the preoperative preparation room, patients' S-AI score T1 = T2 ( P > 0.05), both T1 and T2 < T3 ( P < 0.05); however, at the time of the postoperative waiting period, patients' S-AI score was T1 < T2 < T3 ( P < 0.05), and the postoperative waiting period patients' short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire scores were T1 = T2 < T3 ( P < 0.05).

Conclusions: The perioperative anxiety and pain levels of patients undergoing outpatient breast surgery increased with the prolongation of preoperative waiting time; 4 hours was the critical time point for change, after which the anxiety and pain levels of patients increased significantly.