Intraoperative Pauses in Relation to Stress Assessment Among Surgeons

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Intraoperative stress among the surgical team can be a threat to patient safety and good teamwork. During surgery, surgeons often work under stressful conditions. Reducing intraoperative stress for surgeons could benefit surgeons and subsequently patients. Based on the hypothesis that an intraoperative pause including a sugar-containing drink would decrease surgeon's stress levels, the aim of this study is to compare stress levels, in relation to intraoperative stress and how this is affected by a pause including a sugar-containing drink in simulated operations.

Detailed Description
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A randomized controlled cross-over trial was conducted in a simulator environment. Primary endpoint was intra-individual change in salivary cortisol between simulations with or without a pause including a sugar containing drink. Secondary endpoints were change in heart rate, change in self-perceived stress measured by the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and experience of the intraoperative pause.

Official Title
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Intraoperative Pauses in Relation to Stress Assessment Among Surgeons

Conditions
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Stress

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Pause with a sugar containing drink


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Surgeon within five years of specialization with basic laparoscopic skills, able to perform an appendectomy Exclusion Criteria: diabetes Addison's disease medication with steroids or medication that affect heart rate (beta-blockers, calcium antagonists, antiarrhythmics, and digitalis) Smoking
Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Other
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Crossover Assignment
Interventional Model Description: A randomized controlled cross-over trial was conducted in a simulator environment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| No Intervention: Surgery without intraoperative pause<br>Surgical procedure without pause | |
| Experimental: Surgery with intraoperative pause<br>Three-minute long intraoperative pause, including a sugar-containing drink | Behavioral: Pause with a sugar containing drink<br>* Three-minute long intraoperative pause, including a sugar-containing drink<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Salivary cortisol | Intra-individual change in salivary cortisol between simulations with or without a pause including a sugar containing drink. | 10 minutes | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Heart rate | Change in heart rate during surgery | 3 hours | 
| self-perceived stress | measured by the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) Each STAI item is given a weighted score of 1 to 4. A rating of 4 indicates the presence of a high level of anxiety for ten S-Anxiety items and eleven T-Anxiety items. A high rating indicates the absence of anxiety for the remaining ten S-Anxiety items and nine T-Anxiety items. | 10 minutes | 
| Experience of the intraoperative pause. | Questionnaire with self-experience questions - no scale | 10 minutes |