Effectiveness of nursing educational interventions in managing post-surgical pain. Systematic review.

The review found heterogeneous interventions, surgeries and outcome measures, so the results do not support a clear pooled effect on pain. Many included studies were judged to have low or moderate methodological quality, and the authors note the evidence is not conclusive. The search was limited to English and Spanish articles, so relevant studies in other languages may have been missed. Pain was not always the primary outcome in the included studies, and positive findings often concerned anxiety or secondary outcomes. Studies that also educated nursing staff cannot separate patient education effects from staff knowledge effects.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest.

Do not conclude that nurse-led preoperative education reliably reduces post-surgical pain. The review found inconsistent pain results, and the authors state the evidence does not permit generalisation of effectiveness.