The Effect of Peer Awareness on Preoperative Anxiety in Thyroidectomy Candidates: a Randomized Clinical Trial Study

 Anxiety is one of the most important consequences of head and neck surgery, which increases when the patient becomes aware of the need for surgery and reaches its peak at the time of surgery. The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effect of peer education in controlling preoperative anxiety in patients who are candidates for thyroidectomy surgery.

 In this clinical trial study, 78 patients admitted to Valiasr General Surgery Department and Cancer Institute of Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran was examined by randomly assigning blocks into two control and experimental groups. The data collection tool included demographic characteristics and Spielberger's anxiety questionnaire. In the test group, awareness was given through peers, and the control group received routine care. After collecting the data, it was analyzed using SPSS version 20 software.

 The average age of the participants in the control group was 40.58±11.14 years and in the test group were 39.82±11.43 years. The mean score of anxiety in the experimental group was 59.20±15.67 before awareness, after the intervention the mean score decreased to 54.56±15.70. The mean score of anxiety in the control group was 58.69±18.19 at the end of the study the mean score decreased to 57.66±16.42 which was not statistically significant (p=0.397).

 Although awareness training through peers was able to reduce the anxiety of the patients in the test group, it could not create a statistically significant difference in the level of anxiety of the patients after the intervention.