Efficacy of an assistive intervention for abdominal surgery patients in postoperative care.

Purpose: The objective of this study was to assess efficacy of a bed-assistive device during at-home recovery through self-reports of self-perceived recovery status and oral pain medication usage.

Methods: A case-control design was used to determine differences in self-perceived recovery measures and pain medication according to surgical procedure, device/no device, and age strata. Fifteen female patients undergoing abdominal hysterectomy (n = 6) or Cesarean-section (n = 9) procedures were recruited. Stratified sampling techniques were used to assign patients to the control (n = 8; age, 34.0 [6.3] years) and devices groups (n = 7; 40.7 [12.4] years). Both groups completed 12 questionnaires on perceived recovery status, activities of daily living, and pain medication usage over a five-week recovery period. Device group patients received training on device usage prior to surgery. Repeated measures ANOVA were used to analyse data and compare data across experimental groups.

Results: In general, device users reported higher levels of energy, less pain interference, lower perceived pain, less reliance on pain medication and returned to activities of daily living faster than the control group.

Conclusion: Self-assistive device usage provides significant subjective and objective improvements during at-home recovery and promotes patient independence.