title: Chronic postsurgical pain in patients 5 years after cardiac surgery: A prospective cohort study.
abstract: Chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) is a common complication after many surgical procedures, including cardiac surgery. The prevalence of CPSP after cardiac surgery ranges from 9.5% to 56%. Most studies on CPSP after cardiac surgery are retrospective and long-term prospective studies are scarce. The aim of this study was to follow CPSP and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) prospectively in a cohort of patients, emphasizing the prevalence from 12 months to 5 years.
  
  
  
  A total of 534 patients (23% ≥75 years, 67% men) were consecutively included before surgery. Study-specific questionnaires and the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) were used to measure CPSP at baseline, 12 months and 5-year follow-up. Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36) was used to measure HRQOL.
  
  
  
  Among 458 patients who were alive after 5 years, 82% responded (n = 373). The majority, 89.8% (335/373), did not report CPSP, neither 12 months nor 5 years after surgery. Among the 38 patients who reported CPSP after 12 months, 24 (63%) patients did not report CPSP after 5 years. The overall prevalence of CPSP after 5 years was 3.8% (14/373). Patients reporting CPSP and resolved CPSP had lower scores on HRQOL and more pain preoperatively than patients who did not report CPSP.
  
  
  
  The prevalence of CPSP was lower in this study than previously reported. Among the patients reporting CPSP at 12 months, 63% did not report CPSP after 5 years. Hence, the observed decline in CPSP is in line with studies evaluating CPSP in noncardiac surgery.
  
  
  
  The prevalence of chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) at 5 years after surgery of 3.8% is lower than previously reported. The majority of patients reporting CPSP after 12 months did not report CPSP after 5 years.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Norway.|Department of Cardiology, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Norway.|National Competence Centre for Complex Symptom Disorders, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Norway.|Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: K H
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Gjeilo
authors.affiliation: Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Cardiothoracic Anaesthesiology, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Norway.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stenseth
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Norway.|Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wahba
authors.affiliation: Regional Centre for Child and Youth Mental Health and Child Welfare-Central Norway, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lydersen
authors.affiliation: Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.|Department of Intensive Care Medicine, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Norway.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Klepstad
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects*; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010147:Pain Measurement; D010149:Postoperative Pain / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors