A prospective study comparing perioperative anxiety and posthospital behavior in children with autism spectrum disorder vs typically developing children undergoing outpatient surgery.

Background: Research describing the experience of youth with autism spectrum disorders in the perioperative setting is limited. This study compared youth with autism spectrum disorder to typically developing children in the perioperative setting and examined group differences in: child anxiety, parent anxiety, premedication patterns, induction compliance, and changes in behavior postprocedure.

Methods: Participants were 60 youth (32 with autism spectrum disorder, 28 typically developing) of ages 2-19 years undergoing outpatient surgery and their parents.