Fear and Anxiety in Anesthesia-Naïve Patients Pre-operatively vs Post-operatively

NCT07559461 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: IRB2024-00359
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 40
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The goal of this observational study is to understand how fear and anxiety felt by anesthesia-naive patients compares before versus after their scheduled surgery. Patients who are scheduled to undergo a low-risk surgery/procedure and have never had anesthesia before will be asked to:

1. 1.Fill out a survey before their surgery in the perioperative setting
2. 2.Answer follow-up questions over the phone a few days after their surgery.

Conditions

Anxiety; Anesthesia Awareness

Keywords

Anesthesia-naïve; Anxiety

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Differences in anxiety scale scores pre- and post-operatively in anesthesia-naïve patients

  Participants will be given 2 scores based on their pre-operative survey and their post-operative survey. The change in anxiety score will be evaluated.

  From enrollment until 7 days (+/-72 hours) post-operative

Secondary Outcomes (2)

• Determining if there is an association between a pre-operative desire for information related to anesthesia and the post-operative reality of the individual subject's anesthesia experience.

  From enrollment until 7 days (+/-71 hours) post-operative

• Comparing the frequency of specific fears of events pre-operatively versus the post-operative reality of the individual subject's anesthesia experience.

  From enrollment until 7 days (+/-71 hours) post-operative

Interventions

Survey using a questionnaire. OTHER

A preoperative and postoperative survey questionnaire that is adapted from the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale and includes additional questions regarding their anesthesia and operative care.

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients over 18 who have never received anesthesia before that are scheduled to undergo a low-risk surgery/procedure at Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook Ambulatory Surgery Center, or Stony Brook Ambulatory Care Pavilion.

You may qualify if:

• years old or over
• Patients scheduled to undergo surgeries such as but not limited to:
• cholecystectomies, appendectomies, hernia repairs, breast surgeries, plastic surgeries, thyroidectomy, parathyroidectomy, tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy, lithotripsy, stent placement, kidney stone surgeries, cystoscopies, bladder tumors, ovarian cystectomies, hysterectomies, tubal ligation, hysteroscopy, Intrauterine Device (IUD) insertion, knee replacement, hip replacement, fracture pinning, sports injury surgery such as knee and shoulder scopes. OR patients undergoing procedures such as but not limited to: colonoscopies and endoscopies
• Patient undergoing anesthesia for the first time
• Patients who are not pregnant by self report

You may not qualify if:

• Patients under 18
• Patients who are pregnant
• Patients undergoing high-risk surgeries
• Patients undergoing cancer-related procedures
• Non-English speaking patients
• Patients that experience mental status change postoperatively as determined by the medical teams caring for the patient
• Patients with an existing anxiety disorder, or psychiatric diagnoses
• Patients on benzodiazepines, antidepressants, chronic opioids

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Stony Brook University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Stony Brook University Hospital

Stony Brook, New York, 11794, United States

RECRUITING

Related Publications (8)

• Dost B, Komurcu O, Bilgin S, Turunc E, Ozden GG, Hancioglu S, Baris S. Is Preoperative Anxiety Affected by Watching Short Videos on Social Media? A Prospective Randomized Study. J Perianesth Nurs. 2023 Oct;38(5):758-762. doi: 10.1016/j.jopan.2023.01.006. Epub 2023 Feb 16.

  PMID: 36803738 BACKGROUND

• Tatli U, Kalkan T. Does Social Media Increase Perioperative Anxiety in Patients Undergoing Impacted Third Molar Surgery? J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2025 Mar;83(3):344-352. doi: 10.1016/j.joms.2024.11.010. Epub 2024 Nov 22.

  PMID: 39653328 BACKGROUND

• Eberhart L, Aust H, Schuster M, Sturm T, Gehling M, Euteneuer F, Rusch D. Preoperative anxiety in adults - a cross-sectional study on specific fears and risk factors. BMC Psychiatry. 2020 Mar 30;20(1):140. doi: 10.1186/s12888-020-02552-w.

  PMID: 32228525 BACKGROUND

• Mavridou P, Dimitriou V, Manataki A, Arnaoutoglou E, Papadopoulos G. Patient's anxiety and fear of anesthesia: effect of gender, age, education, and previous experience of anesthesia. A survey of 400 patients. J Anesth. 2013 Feb;27(1):104-8. doi: 10.1007/s00540-012-1460-0. Epub 2012 Aug 3.

  PMID: 22864564 BACKGROUND

• Heyman B, Wigzell H. Immunoregulation by monoclonal sheep erythrocyte-specific IgG antibodies: suppression is correlated to level of antigen binding and not to isotype. J Immunol. 1984 Mar;132(3):1136-43.

  PMID: 6363534 BACKGROUND

• Shafer A, Fish MP, Gregg KM, Seavello J, Kosek P. Preoperative anxiety and fear: a comparison of assessments by patients and anesthesia and surgery residents. Anesth Analg. 1996 Dec;83(6):1285-91. doi: 10.1097/00000539-199612000-00027.

  PMID: 8942601 BACKGROUND

• Celik F, Edipoglu IS. Evaluation of preoperative anxiety and fear of anesthesia using APAIS score. Eur J Med Res. 2018 Sep 11;23(1):41. doi: 10.1186/s40001-018-0339-4.

  PMID: 30205837 BACKGROUND

• Kilinc M, Ozer AB. Fear of going under general anesthesia: A cross-sectional study. Saudi J Anaesth. 2017 Jan-Mar;11(1):128-129. doi: 10.4103/1658-354X.197361. No abstract available.

  PMID: 28217078 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Anxiety Disorders; Intraoperative Awareness

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Mental Disorders; Intraoperative Complications; Pathologic Processes; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Study Officials

• Ana Costa, MD

  Stony Brook University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Anna Suske

CONTACT

631-638-1214; anna.suske@stonybrookmedicine.edu

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: CASE ONLY
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Principle Investigator

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 23, 2026
• First Posted: April 30, 2026
• Study Start: February 12, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): February 1, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): February 1, 2027
• Last Updated: May 5, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-04

Locations

US (1)