The Effect of Video Assisted Information on Anxiety and Pain Associated with Intrauterine Device Insertion

Fear of procedural pain or stress may be a barrier to women accessing intrauterine device (IUD) for contraception. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of video-assisted information on the anxiety and pain levels of patients undergoing IUD placement procedure.

A total of 100 patients who underwent IUD insertion were prospectively enrolled in this observational case-control study. Study group included 50 patients who received both verbal and video-based information, while control group included 50 patients who received only verbal information regarding IUD insertion. The anxiety of the participants was measured by Spielberger's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) scale, both before and after the IUD insertion. State Anxiety Scale (STAI-S) was used to evaluate the current anxiety levels, and Trait Anxiety Scale (STAI-T) was used to evaluate the general and stable aspects of anxiety. Pain was measured using visual analog scale (VAS) immediately after the IUD insertion procedure.

There was no statistically significant difference between the pre-intervention STAI-S and STAI-T scores between the study and control groups (p = 0.098 for STAI-S, p = 0.641 for STAI-T). Similarly, there was no statistically significant difference between the post-intervention STAI-S score between the groups (p = 0.381). However, pain scores measured by VAS were significantly lower in the study group when compared with the control group (p < 0.001).

Video-assisted information about IUD insertion did not have a reducing effect on anxiety, but was associated with a statistically significant decrease in pain.