Preoperative anxiety among patients and its correlation with their personality type and pain: A cross-sectional study

Preoperative anxiety is a significant concern for patients, as it affects surgical outcomes, satisfaction, and pain perception. Although both anxiety and pain are common in surgical settings, their relationship with personality traits has not been previously investigated in the Lebanese population.

To examine the prevalence of preoperative anxiety, pain perception, and personality traits among Lebanese surgical patients, and to assess the associations between these factors.

A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted between April 2024 and January 2025 across Lebanese hospitals. A total of 392 adult patients were recruited through convenience sampling. Data were collected using a questionnaire that included sociodemographic, clinical, and surgical variables, the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale for anxiety, the Visual Analog Scale and Numerical Pain Rating Scale for preoperative pain, and the Ten-Item Personality Inventory for personality traits. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Boards of Makassed General Hospital and Hammoud University Medical Center.

Overall, 25% of participants experienced preoperative anxiety, and 34.5% reported moderate pain. Personality assessment showed that the majority of participants had moderate extraversion (84.1%), moderate emotional stability (65.1%), high conscientiousness (61%), high agreeableness (54.1%), and moderate openness (49.2%). High conscientiousness was significantly associated with higher pain perception (P < 0.05), while high emotional stability was associated with lower levels of anxiety (P < 0.05). No significant association was found between preoperative anxiety and pain (P > 0.05).

This study challenges the assumption that preoperative anxiety and pain are directly correlated and highlights the role of personality traits in shaping patient experience. These findings support the potential value of integrating psychological profiling into preoperative care and lay the groundwork for developing personalized interventions to improve patient-centered surgical outcomes.