OBJECTIVE: Attentional avoidance of negative stimuli and preference for positive stimuli (assessed prior to surgery) have been found to be predictive of @entity282 . However, findings so far were mainly obtained in young @entity1 with benign diagnoses. The aim of the present study was to test whether this relationship holds for aged @entity1 with poorer prognosis. DESIGN: Preoperatively assessed psychological predictors, including attentional measures for emotionally loaded stimuli, among others, were used to predict @entity282 as indicated by rating and consumption of analgesics. @entity1 : Fifty-eight @entity1 scheduled for surgery due to @entity5 (80%) with a mean age of 60.5 years participated in the study. OUTCOME MEASURES: As predictors attentional biases for @entity158 -related, social threat, and positive stimuli were assessed in a dot-probe task. Further predictors were self-reported @entity158 vigilance, @entity158 @entity148 , @entity158 catastrophizing, general @entity148 , @entity308 , and somatization, as well as pressure @entity158 thresholds. As criteria of prediction, numerical scale ratings of @entity282 and the amount of analgesics ( @entity1 -controlled intravenous analgesia [PCIA]) requested after surgery were used. RESULTS:     Only the dot-probe task parameters provided significant explanation of @entity282 . A significant 23% of variance of the PCIA use was accounted for by the dot-probe task parameters. Here, it was mainly the avoidance of social threat words which contributed to significant prediction and did not appear to be related to the other psychological predictors. Seventy-seven percent of the @entity1 with frequent PCIA use could be classified correctly by this variable. CONCLUSIONS: Attentional avoidance of emotionally negative stimuli prior to surgery proved to be a powerful predictor of @entity282 reflected by the consumption of analgesics; this time in a sample of aged @entity1 with various but mainly malign diagnoses. This measure outperformed traditional predictors like @entity308 , @entity148 , as well as @entity158 catastrophizing, and deserves further attention.

Attentional avoidance of negative experiences as predictor of XXXX ratings and consumption of analgesics: comparison with other psychological predictors.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients', 'patient', 'PATIENTS'] @entity308 :: ('MESH:D003866', 'Disease') :: ['depression'] @entity5 :: ('MESH:D009369', 'Disease') :: ['cancer'] @entity148 :: ('MESH:D001008', 'Disease') :: ['anxiety'] @entity158 :: ('MESH:D010146', 'Disease') :: ['pain'] @entity282 :: ('MESH:D010149', 'Disease') :: ['acute postoperative pain', 'postoperative pain']
@entity282 :: (MESH:D010149,Disease) :: ['postoperative pain']
