Related Experiment Videos

Parental Anxiety and Preoperative Anxiety in Children: A Dose-Response Association in the Perioperative Setting

Yiliminuer Aimaiti1, Yiru Wang2, Anqi Lai3

  • 1School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.

Journal of Perianesthesia Nursing : Official Journal of the American Society of Perianesthesia Nurses
|July 16, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Parental anxiety significantly increases children's preoperative anxiety, with higher parental anxiety levels correlating with greater child anxiety. Assessing parental anxiety can help identify at-risk children for better perioperative care.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Anesthesiology
  • Perioperative Nursing
  • Child Psychology

Background:

  • Preoperative anxiety in children is a common concern during surgical procedures.
  • Parental anxiety is recognized as a potential influencing factor on a child's perioperative experience.
  • Effective risk assessment strategies are crucial for optimizing pediatric surgical care.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between parental anxiety and preoperative anxiety in pediatric patients.
  • To evaluate the utility of parental anxiety as a predictor in perioperative risk assessment.
  • To understand the role of parental anxiety in the context of child surgery.

Main Methods:

  • A single-center, cross-sectional observational study.
  • Postoperative telephone interviews with parents/guardians of children undergoing elective surgery.
  • Numeric rating scales (0-10) used to assess parental and child preoperative anxiety levels.

Main Results:

  • A significant positive correlation was found between parental anxiety and child preoperative anxiety.
  • A dose-response relationship was observed, with moderate and severe parental anxiety linked to higher child anxiety.
  • Including parental anxiety in risk models improved the identification of children with preoperative anxiety.

Conclusions:

  • Parental anxiety is a practical and accessible indicator of a child's preoperative anxiety.
  • Integrating parental anxiety assessment into nursing workflows can enhance early risk identification.
  • Family-centered interventions can be more effectively targeted by considering parental anxiety levels.
Abstract

Keywords:
Family-centered careParental anxietyPediatric surgeryPerioperative nursingPreoperative anxiety

Related Concept Videos

Parenteral Anesthetics: Overview01:24

Parenteral Anesthetics: Overview

Intravenous anesthetics are drugs administered parenterally to induce anesthesia or sedation. Propofol is a widely used agent formulated as a 1% emulsion in soybean oil, glycerol, and egg phosphatide. It induces rapid anesthesia primarily due to its rapid distribution from the bloodstream to target tissues and is metabolized in the liver. However, it can cause significant pain on injection and hypertriglyceridemia. Fospropofol, a water-based prodrug of propofol, lacks these adverse effects.
General Anesthesia: Overview01:24

General Anesthesia: Overview

Anesthesia is a medical procedure that uses drugs for CNS suppression to enable painless surgeries and procedures. The selection of anesthetics is influenced by their pharmacokinetic properties, side effects, and patient characteristics. Various types of anesthesia include general, local, regional, spinal, and inhalational.
General anesthesia induces unconsciousness in the whole body, while the others target specific areas or sensations. It is administered to minimize adverse effects, maintain...
Anxiolytic Drugs: Benzodiazepines and Buspirone01:29

Anxiolytic Drugs: Benzodiazepines and Buspirone

Benzodiazepines are a class of anxiolytic drugs known for their rapid efficacy and high therapeutic-to-lethal dose ratio, but with a potential risk of drug dependence. These drugs are lipophilic, allowing for rapid absorption after oral administration, eventually reaching the central nervous system (CNS). Once in the CNS, benzodiazepines bind to the allosteric site of the GABAA receptor. This binding enhances the inhibitory effects of the neurotransmitter GABA. By doing so, they prevent...
Anxiolytic Drugs: Overview01:26

Anxiolytic Drugs: Overview

Anxiolytic drugs are vital in managing anxiety disorders by effectively alleviating symptoms such as excessive fear, tachycardia, and tremors. There are several classes of anxiolytic medications, each with unique mechanisms of action and potential side effects.
Primary Types of Anxiolytic Drugs
1. Benzodiazepines:
Benzodiazepines bind to the GABA-A receptor in the brain, enhancing GABA's interaction. This action reduces neurotransmission, effectively blocking anxiety-associated limbic circuitry.
Stages of General Anesthesia01:22

Stages of General Anesthesia

Various sedation levels offer significant advantages in facilitating procedural interventions for patients undergoing medical or invasive surgical procedures. These levels span from anxiolysis to general anesthesia, providing a spectrum of sedative effects to cater to specific patient needs. Anxiolysis reduces anxiety and is achieved through minimal sedation, enabling patients to remain awake and responsive while feeling more at ease during the procedure. This level can benefit minor...
Preparedness and Phobias01:09

Preparedness and Phobias

Human fear responses to certain stimuli, such as darkness, heights, deep water, and blood, can often arise despite the absence of direct negative experiences. This phenomenon is rooted in evolutionary psychology, which posits that humans have developed a predisposition to fear stimuli that historically posed significant survival threats. This predisposition, known as preparedness, suggests that early humans who developed a fear of potentially dangerous entities, such as venomous snakes and...