Factors influencing patient satisfaction in postoperative pain management: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Effective postoperative pain management is pivotal not only for alleviating discomfort but also for enhancing overall patient satisfaction and recovery. This systematic review aims to investigate various factors influencing patient satisfaction due to the postoperative pain management offered.

Using relevant keywords, we searched PubMed, Scopus, and the Cochrane database after registering the protocol in PROSPERO. A qualitative systematic review was planned using the Appraisal Tool for Cross-Sectional Studies (AXIS tool) to assess the risk of bias (RoB). Thereafter, a quantitative meta-analysis of the transformed proportions was performed using an inverse-variance random-effects model, and a Freeman-Tukey double arcsine transformation was applied to all reported proportions.

From the 1234 articles available after the database search, 21 articles comprising 7289 patients met the inclusion criteria. Among the 21 studies, 12 (57.14%) had a moderate RoB, while nine (42.85%) had a low RoB. The random effects model, using the inverse variance method and the Freeman-Tukey double arcsine transformation, revealed a summarised proportion of 0.8 (95% confidence interval: 0.74,0.85), with significant heterogeneity (P < 0.01 and I² statistic of 97%). The various factors influencing postoperative patient satisfaction were summarised.

Based on the results from this systematic review and meta-analysis, we conclude that the majority of the patients are satisfied with the postoperative pain management offered (a summarised proportion of 0.8 or 80%). Further studies need to be done to find out optimal strategies to improve patient satisfaction undergoing various surgeries. Having robust perioperative pain management policies and an audit of patient satisfaction for pain management could help in improving institutional practices.