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 .
Chronic postthoracotomy pain and health-related quality of life.
BACKGROUND Pain after thoracotomy  is common . The objective of this study was to assess whether pain 3 months postthoracotomy negatively impacts quality of life . METHODS One hundred ten patients were prospect ively assessed using the Medical Outcomes Study  36-Item Short Form Health Survey before and 3 months after elective thoracotomy .  Pain and medication use were evaluated by question naire . Patients experiencing pain at 3 months were compared with patients who did not have postthoracotomy pain . RESULTS Seventy-five patients ( 68 % ) had pain 3 months postthoracotomy ; 12 patients ( 11 % ) rated their average pain greater than 3 ( out of 10 ) . Eighteen ( 16 % ) patients required opioid analgesics . The pain group reported lower SF-36 scores in physical functioning ( p = 0.049 ) , bodily pain ( p = 0.0002 ) , and vitality ( p = 0.044 ) . There were no other significant differences in any SF-36 scale between the pain and non-pain groups . CONCLUSIONS Pain is commonly reported at 3 months after elective thoracotomy but is generally mild , shows improvement with time , and does not usually require opioid analgesics . Patients who experience postthoracotomy pain at 3 months are at risk for significantly decreased physical functioning and vitality , but are not at risk for significantly decreased social , emotional , or mental health functioning compared with patients who do not experience postthoracotomy pain at 3 months
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 .