title: Patient awareness of health precautions after splenectomy.
abstract: Sepsis after splenectomy is a lifelong risk, and patients who have had splenectomy should be educated about this risk. This study examines patient knowledge after splenectomy. We reviewed hospital records of 118 patients who had splenectomies performed between 1982 and 1988 at New Hanover Memorial Hospital. Twenty-four patients have died since their surgery; one death was suspected to be due to postsplenectomy sepsis. Of the 89 patients alive and eligible for follow-up, we were able to query 63. Only 16% were aware of any health precautions. After prompting, patient awareness improved to 40%. We also surveyed 11 of the 14 surgeons who performed the splenectomies. They indicated that they always discuss with their patients the immunologic consequences of spleen removal and the increased risks of infection, although they do not always recommend pneumococcal vaccine. We conclude that splenectomy patients have a low level of knowledge about postsplenectomy infection risks and precautions. We developed an educational pamphlet to aid the surgeon in patient education.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of North Carolina, School of Medicine, Chapel Hill.
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Covington
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Churchill
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Maxwell
authors.forename: K S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Norman
authors.forename: T V
authors.initials: TV
authors.lastname: Clancy
mesh_terms: D001364:Awareness; D001424:Bacterial Infections / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006746:Hospital Bed Capacity, 500 and over; D006801:Humans; D009657:North Carolina; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D012307:Risk Factors; D013156:Splenectomy / Q000009:adverse effects*