title: Anxiety before and after surgical repair in patients with asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysm.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Ruptured intracranial aneurysm is a serious condition with high mortality and morbidity. Patients notified of the presence of the unruptured intracranial aneurysm may become anxious because of the fear of rupture. We prospectively investigated the anxiety of patients with unruptured intracranial aneurysm before and after surgery.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-seven patients with an asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysm were enrolled, 13 men and 24 women aged 32 to 70 years (mean age, 57.2 years), who underwent surgical repair of the aneurysm. The anxiety of patients was assessed one month before and after surgery using the Japanese version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The trait anxiety scores, which refer to stable personality factors reflecting the general level of fearfulness, did not change significantly after surgery. In contrast, the state anxiety scores, which refer to transient anxiety that varies according to the situation, decreased significantly after surgery (p = 0.001, paired t test). Only the preoperative high state anxiety scores among the multiple variables were associated with the significant decrease in state anxiety after surgery (p = 0.0183, logistic regression analysis).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The anxiety of patients with asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysm significantly decreased after surgery. Anxiety of patients with asymptomatic unruptured intracranial aneurysm may deserve attention in deciding whether to treat the aneurysm.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Iwate Medical University, Morioka, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasunari
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Otawara
authors.forename: Kuniaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ogasawara
authors.forename: Yoshitaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kubo
authors.forename: Nobuhiko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tomitsuka
authors.forename: Mikio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ogawa
authors.forename: Michiyasu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Keiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yamadate
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D002532:Intracranial Aneurysm / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology; D011184:Postoperative Period; D011379:Prognosis; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012720:Severity of Illness Index