Patients' expectations, experience and acceptability of postoperative analgesia: a nested qualitative study within a randomised controlled trial comparing rectus sheath catheter and thoracic epidural analgesia
Authors' conclusion
Patients' experiences start far earlier than the experience of the intervention itself through anticipatory anxieties and fears about receiving a technique and its potential implications.
Study context
- Population
- Patients receiving postoperative analgesia within a two-year RCTinterviewed
- Participants
- 20 patients
- Comparison
- Rectus sheath catheter vs thoracic epidural analgesia
- Primary endpoint
- Acceptability, expectations and experiences of receiving the interventions
- Follow-up
- 4 weeks post-intervention
Methodological detailsgrounded theory approach, constant comparative analysis, patient and public involvement
- Grounded theory approach
- Constant comparative analysis
- Patient and public involvement
Primary result
As reported in the abstract
- No notable differences in postoperative acceptability or experience of pain management
- Pre-operatively, thoracic epidural analgesia a source of anticipatory fear and anxiety; rectus sheath catheter not associated with such anxieties
- Negative experiences of thoracic epidural insertion; some rectus sheath catheter recipients lacked confidence in staff ability to manage the local anaesthetic infusion pump
Safety
Experienced adverse events
- Some adverse events with both interventions, proportionately more with thoracic epidural analgesia
Original publication
Patients' expectations, experience and acceptability of postoperative analgesia: a nested qualitative study within a randomised controlled trial comparing rectus sheath catheter and thoracic epidural analgesia. Anaesthesia. Published 9 July 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →