Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Chronic postoperative pain (CPOP) adversely affects the quality of patients’ lives and can cause medical and legal problems and economic loss, due to workforce loss. There is no research showing the incidence of CPOP in Turkey. The aim of this study was to find the most prominent factor in the development of CPOP in patients who undergo any kind of surgical procedure.

METHODS

Patients (165 women and 146 men) who were operated on in five hospitals were included in the study. A patient data sheet and follow-up form were prepared. All patients were followed up for 2 months by telephone calls and were asked about their pain scores. When patients reported pain in 2nd month after their operation, they received re-evaluation and consultation from the pain department.

RESULTS

Results

Sixty-seven patients complained of prolonged pain at the area of surgery 2 months after their surgery, and 46 of these patients (14.7%) were diagnosed with CPOP. The presence of CPOP was statistically significant when patients were grouped by age: 18–45 years (A) and older than 45 years (B). A statistically significant relationship was found between CPOP diagnosis and ASA scores. According to the results, an age older than 45 years and an ASA score of 3 play a major role in the development of CPOP.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

Contrary to previous literature, this study found that factors such as socio-economic status, operation type and extent, geographical region, body mass index, gender, previous experience of pain, drug use and the presence of some neuropathy-related chronic diseases had no effect on the possibility of CPOP. However, ASA scores and age played major roles in the development of CPOP.