Differences in postoperative maladaptive behavioral changes between partial and total tonsillectomy patients.

INTRODUCTION: Behavioral difficulties associated with sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) improve after tonsillectomy, but surgery may lead to the development of short-term postoperative maladaptive behavioral changes (PMBCs). These PMBCs have not been compared between total and partial tonsillectomy patients. METHODS: SDB patients aged 1-6 years undergoing tonsillectomy were recruited. Parent phone surveys were conducted at 48-72 hours and 1-2 weeks postoperatively. Parents identified PMBCs using the Post-Hospital Behavior Questionnaire (PHBQ), scoring changes in behavior compared to baseline. PMBCs were defined by PHBQ scores >0 and compared by one-tailed t-test. Postoperative pain was categorized as mild, moderate, and severe pain using the Parents' Postoperative Pain Measure (PPPM). Differences in pain levels were analyzed by Chi-squared test. A p-value <0.05 was deemed statistically significant. RESULTS: Seventy-eight children completed the study, with 29 total tonsillectomy and 49 partial tonsillectomy patients. At both time points after surgery, PHBQ scores were higher in total tonsillectomy patients than in partial tonsillectomy patients (3.41 ±â€¯3.53 versus 1.94 ±â€¯2.25 at 2-3 days, p = .013). PMBCs were also more frequent in total than partial tonsillectomy patients (76% versus 59% at 2-3 days; 28% versus 7% at 1-2 weeks). Meanwhile, distribution of pain levels was similar between both partial and total tonsillectomy patients. CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates that total tonsillectomy patients more frequently experience PMBCs than do partial tonsillectomy patients despite similar distributions in pain levels postoperatively. This difference in PHBQ scores between total and partial tonsillectomy patients should be further explored.

Factors influencing postoperative pain following discharge in pediatric ambulatory surgery patients.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: To identify demographic, intraoperative, and parental factors that influence the postoperative pain experience in ambulatory surgery pediatric patients. We also monitored postoperative maladaptive behavior changes (PMBCs) to investigate the relationship between pain and PMBCs. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Discharge period after ambulatory surgery. PATIENTS: 204 patients ages 1-6years undergoing ambulatory orthopedic, urology, general surgery, and otolaryngology surgical procedures who were American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status I or II. INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS: We administered telephone questionnaires to parents of ambulatory surgery patients 1-6years old exploring pain ratings, behavior change ratings, and medication compliance at 2-3days and 1-2weeks after surgery. Pain and behavioral change scores were obtained using the Parents Postoperative Pain Measure (PPPM) and Post-Hospital Behavior Questionnaire (PHBQ). Parental medication compliance was defined as parents who followed the discharge instructions for pain medication administration. MAIN RESULTS: For our cohort, 69% of patients experienced pain after 2-3days and 17% after 1-2weeks post-discharge. PMBCs were reported in 55% after 2-3days, and in 15% after 1-2weeks. In addition, PMBCs occurred in the absence of pain (PPPM=0) at rates of 20% and 5% at 2-3days and 1-2weeks after surgery, respectively. Female sex, anesthesia duration, and otolaryngology procedures correlated with higher postoperative pain (PPPM) scores in univariate and multivariate analysis. Intraoperative medications did not correlate with PPPM or PHBQ scores. Higher pain scores were associated with parents who were compliant with discharge instructions for pain medications. CONCLUSIONS: Many pediatric patients experienced short-term pain and PMBCs after ambulatory surgery, but these largely resolved by 1-2weeks following discharge. Patient sex, anesthesia duration, and surgical procedure influenced postoperative pain and/or PMBCs. Furthermore, PMBCs were associated with, but not solely a manifestation of, postoperative pain.