Virtual parental presence with coaching for reducing preoperative anxiety in children: a feasibility and pilot randomized controlled trial

Background: Preoperative anxiety in children causes negative postoperative outcomes. Parental presence at induction is a non-pharmacological strategy for relieving anxiety; nevertheless, it is not always possible or effective, namely when parents are overly anxious. Parental presence via video has been demonstrated to be useful in other contexts (divorce, criminal court). This study reports the feasibility of a randomized controlled trial to investigate the effect of video parental presence and parental coaching at induction on preoperative anxiety. Methods: The study was a randomized, 2 pound 2 factorial design trial examining parental presence (virtual vs. physical) and coaching (provided vs. not provided). Feasibility was assessed by enrollment rate, attrition rate, compliance, and staff satisfaction with virtual method with the NASATask Load Index (NASA-TLX) and System Usability Scale (SUS). For the children 's anxiety and postoperative outcomes, the modi fied Yale Preoperative Anxiety Scale (mYPAS) and Post-Hospitalization Behavioral Questionnaire (PHBQ) were used. Parental anxiety was evaluated with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) questionnaire.