Need for psychosocial assistance in patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery evaluated by a seven-item questionnaire.
BACKGROUND
Cardiothoracic surgery can have adverse effects on the patients' psychosocial well-being which may influence the overall prognosis. In this study, we tested the use of a seven-item screening instrument for the preoperative identification of need for psychosocial assistance in cardiothoracic patients. Methods and


RESULTS
A total of 297 consecutive patients (69% male) with a median age of 70 years (59;75) completed the seven-item Hornheide Screening Instrument (HSI) on the day of admission. According to questionnaire scores predefined in the literature (cutoff  ≥ 4), 130 patients (44%) exhibited a need for psychosocial support. We found female patients to have significantly higher need for psychosocial support than male patients, irrespective of their age, New York Heart Association classification or Canadian Cardiovascular Society classification, and the type of surgery they were undergoing (53 vs. 41%, p=0.034). In addition, we found that preoperative need for psychosocial support, using the predefined cutoff criterion as well as a higher absolute score, was associated with a prolonged length of hospitalization (p<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
We found the HSI to be a suitable tool to identify psychosocial need in cardiothoracic patients. The relatively high incidence of these patients in our study concurs with previous studies, which generally used more complex instruments. In addition, we found that preoperative scores were associated with prolonged length of stay. Therefore, the use of this questionnaire could represent an alternative, more rapid tool for the psychosocial assessment of cardiothoracic patients in daily routine.
Department of Cardiac Surgery, University Hospital Muenster, Muenster, Germany.
Maike K
MK
Sachs
Department of Cardiology, University Hospital Muenster, Muenster, Germany.
Peter C
PC
Kahr
Department of Cardiac Surgery, University Hospital Muenster, Muenster, Germany.
Hans H
HH
Scheld
Department of Cardiac Surgery, University Hospital Muenster, Muenster, Germany.
Gaby
G
Drees
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D010343:Patient Admission; D010361:Patients / Q000523:psychology*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000523:psychology; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers; D019616:Thoracic Surgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult