title: Italian validation of the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Preoperative anxiety is usually experienced by patients awaiting surgical procedures and it can negatively impact patient's outcome. The Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale (APAIS) is a questionnaire created to identify anxious patients and their need for information: it has been translated and validated in many languages because of its reliability and ease of completion. To date, no Italian version of the APAIS has been produced; our aim was to translate and validate the APAIS in Italian.
  
  
  METHODS
  We produced an Italian version of the APAIS and we administered it to 110 patients undergoing elective surgery; we explored its structure by factor analysis and its reliability by Cronbach's alpha. We analyzed its external validity by confronting it to the Spielberg's State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of the Italian version of the APAIS were determined.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Italian version of the APAIS confirmed the original structure of the questionnaire and its internal consistency; it well correlated with the STAI-Y1, the subscale of the STAI which explore the anxiety "state." An APAIS score of 14 was found as best cutoff to distinguish anxious and non-anxious patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Italian translation of the APAIS showed psychometric properties similar to the original version. Its reliability and its efficiency make it a powerful tool even in Italian population to detect anxiety and need for information.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurologic, Reproductive, and Odontostomatological Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy - pasqualebuonanno19@libero.it.
authors.forename: Pasquale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Buonanno
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurologic, Reproductive, and Odontostomatological Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Laiola
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurologic, Reproductive, and Odontostomatological Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Palumbo
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurologic, Reproductive, and Odontostomatological Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Gianmario
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Spinelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Surgery, and Emergency Medicine, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Virginia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Terminiello
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurologic, Reproductive, and Odontostomatological Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Servillo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001007:Anxiety / Q000175:diagnosis*; D059026:Diagnostic Self Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D011300:Preoperative Care; D011594:Psychometrics; D014177:Translations; D055815:Young Adult