Effects of Cold Therapy on Pain and Anxiety During Needle Removal From Implanted Ports

Abstract

This study was conducted as a quasiexperimental, single-blind study to examine the effect of cold therapy on pain and anxiety during port needle removal. Patients in the experimental group received cold therapy 10 minutes before port needle removal. Patients in the control group received no intervention before port needle removal. Data were collected using the visual analog scale (VAS) and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). After cold therapy was applied to the patients in the experimental group, the second and third VAS scores were found to be statistically significant and lower than those in the control group (P < .05). There was no statistically significant difference between the anxiety levels of the experimental group and the control group before cold therapy (P > .005). However, the STAI scores of the experimental group were found to be statistically and significantly lower than those of the control group after cold therapy (P < .05). This study determined that cold therapy before port needle removal reduces pain and anxiety. Cold therapy may be recommended as an effective nonpharmacological pain control method with ease of application to prevent pain induced by port needle removal.