title: Confounding factors in infant pain assessment during recovery from anesthesia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate in what ways infant pain assessments differed between outpatient surgical recovery areas (OPSRA) and other clinical settings that included inpatient postsurgical recovery areas.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a qualitative descriptive design, 8 nurse participants working in OPSRA and 7 nurse participants working in other clinical settings were interviewed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The assessments of participants in the OPSRA differed from those of other participants and were confounded by effects of a short-acting anesthetic, lower expectations of pain, and several extraneous factors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Recognizing infant pain in OPSRA is complex. Nurses working in OPSRA may need to assume leadership to address issues relating to accurate identification of infant pain and alleviating extraneous factors that may influence adequate treatment of pain.
authors.affiliation: University of Colorado School of Nursing, Denver, CO, USA. madalynn.neu@uchsc.edu
authors.forename: Madalynn
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Neu
authors.forename: Barbara F
authors.initials: BF
authors.lastname: Fuller
mesh_terms: D000556:Ambulatory Surgical Procedures / Q000451:nursing; D000762:Anesthesia Recovery Period; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D015986:Confounding Factors, Epidemiologic; D006776:Hospitals, Pediatric; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D017283:Neonatal Nursing / Q000592:standards; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000592:standards*; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000523:psychology*; D010146:Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000451:nursing; D010147:Pain Measurement / Q000592:standards*; D016528:Postanesthesia Nursing / Q000592:standards; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires