Pediatric anesthesia & critical care
Child's Temperament as Risk Factor for Preoperative Anxiety—A Secondary Analysis of the ALPAKA Trial
Authors' conclusion
Behavioral inhibition is a robust predictor of perioperative anxiety in young children, both before and after midazolam administration.
Study context
- Population
- Children aged 2–8 years undergoing elective surgeryincluded in final analysis
- Participants
- 89 children
- Comparison
- Association of temperament traits with preoperative anxiety before (T1) and after (T2) midazolam
- Primary endpoint
- Preoperative anxiety (modified Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale-Short Form (mYPAS-SF); elevated anxiety mYPAS-SF > 30) and its association with temperament (Integrative Child Temperament Inventory (ICTI))
- Follow-up
- Before (T1) and after (T2) midazolam administration
Primary result
As reported in the abstract
Behavioral inhibition vs anxiety (Spearman correlation)
Behavioral inhibition associated with anxiety at T1: rs, 95% CI 0.15-0.53, p = 0.001
0.35
Behavioral inhibition associated with anxiety at T2: rs, 95% CI 0.28-0.62, p < 0.001
0.46
Further findings
Predictors of elevated anxiety at T1 (logistic regression)
| OR (95% CI) | P value | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Male sexIndependently associated | 3.16 (1.36–7.19) | P = 0.011 | |
| Prior anesthesia experienceIndependently associated | 4.28 (1.78–10.39) | P = 0.001 | |
| 0.050.21520Odds ratio (log scale) |
Behavioral inhibition and elevated anxiety, adjusted for sex and prior anesthesia (multivariable logistic regression) · T1
| OR (95% CI) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Behavioral inhibitionAdjusted by sex and prior anesthesia | 1.02 (1.00–1.05) | |
| 0.512Odds ratio (log scale) |
- For T2, corresponding model showed limited explanatory power
Original publication
Child's Temperament as Risk Factor for Preoperative Anxiety—A Secondary Analysis of the ALPAKA Trial. Paediatr Anaesth. Published 18 February 2026. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →