Anxiety Comparison among Patients Who Received Acupressure: Syringe versus Butterfly Needle - Abstract
Background: Peripheral blood sample collection is an invasive practice and not at all free of psychological repercussions. This study aimed to analyze the correlation between anxiety and pain during the peripheral vessel blood sampling procedure; check whether the difficulty in sampling and the stasis of tourniquet induce an increase in anxiety.
Method: Patients in September-October 2017, at the Pennetti Analysis Laboratory in Barletta (Puglia, Italy). Inclusion criteria were: absence of haematological diseases or coagulopathies; absence of pathologies that can alter the results. Recording data by occult observation and transcription of prepost- venipuncture anxiety using the MADS scale.
Results: 314 subjects were involved in this study (188 females, 126 males), mean age was 46 ± 24 years. Devices used were: syringes with 22 Gauge needle (224 patients, 71%) and butterfly needle 23 Gauge (90 patients, 29%). Mean stasis of tourniquet was for syringe 42 ± 4 seconds and 76 ± 5 seconds for butterfly needle. Anxiety was performed with the MADS scale in the pre and post sampling moment: syringe device: 22.5 ± 3.74 and then 15.9 ± 4.85%; butterfly needle: 12.7 ± 4.24 and then 24.2 ± 3.75. Pain was assessed with the VAS scale: 1.3 ± 0.8 for syringe and 2 ± 1.2 for butterfly needle.
Conclusion: Blood sampling with syringe induces anxiety decreases immediately after the procedure, while the butterfly needle sampling has less anxiogenic impact on the patient, but its use on patients with difficulty in finding a venous access causes correlation with negative sensations, despite the device being less physical and visual impact.