Two-thirds of the studies found that patients who suffered surgical complications had significantly worse postoperative psychosocial outcomes even after controlling for preoperative psychosocial outcomes , clinical and demographic factors .
Surgical complications appear to be a significant and often long-term predictor of patient postoperative psychosocial outcomes .
The results highlight the importance of attending to patients ' psychological needs in the aftermath of surgical complications
OBJECTIVE Surgical complications may affect patients psychologically due to challenges such as prolonged recovery or long-lasting disability .
Psychological distress could further delay patients ' recovery as stress delays wound healing and compromises immunity .
This review investigates whether surgical complications adversely affect patients ' postoperative well-being and the duration of this impact .
Publication bias in clinical research
In a retrospective survey , 487 research projects approved by the Central Oxford Research Ethics Committee between 1984 and 1987 , were studied for evidence of publication bias . As of May , 1990 , 285 of the studies had been analysed by the investigators , and 52 % of these had been published . Studies with statistically significant results were more likely to be published than those finding no difference between the study groups ( adjusted odds ratio [ OR ] 2.32 ; 95 % confidence interval [ Cl ] 1.25 - 4.28 ) . Studies with significant results were also more likely to lead to a greater number of publications and presentations and to be published in journals with a high citation impact factor . An increased likelihood of publication was also associated with a high rating by the investigator of the importance of the study results , and with increasing sample size . The tendency towards publication bias was greater with observational and laboratory-based experimental studies ( OR = 3.79 ; 95 % Cl = 1.47 - 9.76 ) than with r and omised clinical trials ( OR = 0.84 ; 95 % Cl = 0.34 - 2.09 ) . We have confirmed the presence of publication bias in a cohort of clinical research studies . These findings suggest that conclusions based only on a review of published data should be interpreted cautiously , especially for observational studies . Improved strategies are needed to identify the results of unpublished as well as published studies
Two-thirds of the studies found that patients who suffered surgical complications had significantly worse postoperative psychosocial outcomes even after controlling for preoperative psychosocial outcomes , clinical and demographic factors .
Surgical complications appear to be a significant and often long-term predictor of patient postoperative psychosocial outcomes .
The results highlight the importance of attending to patients ' psychological needs in the aftermath of surgical complications
OBJECTIVE Surgical complications may affect patients psychologically due to challenges such as prolonged recovery or long-lasting disability .
Psychological distress could further delay patients ' recovery as stress delays wound healing and compromises immunity .
This review investigates whether surgical complications adversely affect patients ' postoperative well-being and the duration of this impact .