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Aim. The aim of this paper is to examine the pain profile of three types of day surgery operation and undertake a comparative analysis of the intensity and duration of pain over a consecutive 4-day period. Background. Although studies on pain after day surgery have figured prominently, evidence is limited as to what intensity and duration of pain should be regarded as unacceptable, and how it varies for different operation types. Methods. A prospective postal survey ( n = 785) was undertaken during a 12-month period in 1998/1999 involving three day surgery units in three different areas in England and Wales and based on three commonly performed operation types: hernia repair, varicose vein surgery and laparoscopic sterilization. A visual analogue scale was used to measure the intensity of pain experienced over a 4-day consecutive time period. Analysis of variance was used to explore statistically significant differences between levels of pain for the operation types. Results. On the day of surgery and even on the third postoperative day, high levels of severe pain (>50 mm on a Visual Analogue Scale) were experienced. Pain levels differed across different operation types. On the day of surgery, more patients undergoing laparoscopic sterilization experienced severe pain. By the third postoperative day, more of those who had been operated on for hernia repair, followed by varicose vein surgery and laparoscopic sterilization, continued to experience severe pain. Conclusion. A large number of patients experienced severe levels of pain after day surgery. This could have resulted from a lack of knowledge about the assessment and management of pain, in which nurses play an important role. This study has highlighted that different pain trajectories are associated with different operation types, and this has important implications for the preoperative and postoperative preparation of day surgery patients as well as the role of nurses in the overall success of the day surgery process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

coll a.m., ameen j.r.m. & moseley l.g. (2004) Journal of Advanced Nursing 46(1), 53–65 Reported pain after day surgery: a critical literature review Despite technological advancements in anaesthesia and analgesia, reported pain levels after day surgery remains high. Whilst it is unrealistic to expect no pain, the level that constitutes ‘acceptable’ pain remains unclear because of inconsistencies in reporting. These inconsistencies have resulted from different interpretations of what pain is and the use of different measurement tools. The aim of this paper is to report a study investigating any disparity in reported levels of pain following day surgery, within different specialities and in relation to specific operative procedures. Nursing and health care papers published since 1983 were sought using the keywords: postoperative pain, postoperative complications, pain after day surgery, day surgery, ambulatory surgery, nursing, operation types, operative procedures, surgical procedures, descriptors of pain, pain intensity, verbal descriptor scale, numerical rating scale, visual analogue scale, validity, reliability, design, sample size, data collection methods and their various combinations. Databases searched were Medline, CINAHL , Nursing Collection, Embase, Healthstar, BMJ and several on-line Internet journals, specifically Ambulatory Surgery. The search was restricted to publications in the English language. Twenty-four papers were identified. Inconsistencies in the reported intensity of pain are highlighted, in relation to different operative procedures and specialities. Data in the papers are based on different descriptors, measurement tools and data collection methods. In many cases, sample size, and validity and reliability can also be questioned. There is a disparity in reported levels of pain after day surgery. It is important that a unified day surgery pain measurement strategy is established, so that patients can be informed about the intensity of pain that they are likely to experience following specific procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]