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USING RELAXATION TECHNIQUES DURING MEDICAL PROCEDURES SAVES PAIN, TIME AND MONEY
CHICAGO -- Using hypnotic relaxation techniques during invasive medical procedures reduced patients' anxiety and discomfort, and therefore, procedure time and cost, according to a Harvard Medical School study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The study, which also found using the relaxation techniques reduces the cost of the procedure and in nearly one-half of the cases, can eliminate the need for conscious sedation altogether, was presented here today at the 85th Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
"There's relatively little time and effort involved in using imagery and relaxation techniques -- it can even be done while the patient is being prepped for the procedure," said Elvira V. Lang, M.D., associate professor of radiology and medicine at Harvard Medical School, and chief of Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiology at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston. "When patients are less tense, they have less pain."
In a study of 161 patients undergoing angiography (X-ray of the blood vessels), angioplasty (opening of blocked blood vessels) or kidney drainage, all were offered conscious sedation, also called twilight sedation, a mixture of anti-pain and anti-anxiety medication that is commonly administered for those procedures. Fourteen of the 79 patients (18 percent) who did not undergo relaxation techniques requested no conscious sedation. Comparatively, 38 of the 82 patients (46 percent) who used relaxation techniques requested no conscious sedation.
Replacing or supplementing anesthesia with the relaxation techniques reduced average procedure time by 17 minutes (20 percent) and average procedure cost by $130 per patient. The cost savings were predominantly due to fewer interruptions and distractions during the procedures, and avoiding over- or under-sedation, in which the patient often has to be admitted to the hospital overnight, rather than released within a few hours of the procedure.
"Having a nervous, anxious patient is not only bad for the patient and the operator, but also costs money," said Dr. Lang. "I started using this procedure nearly 10 years ago when I had one patient who was very nervous and needed a lot of drugs in order to have his stomach tube changed. We used imagery and relaxation techniques and it worked like a charm. I've since used it for patients undergoing a number of procedures."
In the technique, a specially trained nurse or team member reads a script to induce relaxation, telling the patient to close and relax the eyes, take deep breaths, feel a sensation of floating and go to a safe and comfortable place.
"Then we give patients control, and they can ring a bell at any point if they feel they need more anesthesia," said Dr. Lang. "Typically, as time goes by during the procedure, a patient becomes more anxious, but using these techniques, a relaxed state is maintained."
Max P. Rosen, M.D., is co-author of a paper on the topic being presented at RSNA by Dr. Lang.
The RSNA is an association of 31,000 radiologists and physicists in medicine dedicated to education and research in the science of radiology. The Society's headquarters are located at 820 Jorie Blvd., Oak Brook, Illinois 60523-2251.
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Note: Copies of 1999 RSNA news releases are available online at http://www.pcipr.com/rsna beginning Monday, Nov. 29.
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