Effects of Singing Songs about Preoperative Care for Tonsillectomy on the Anxiety of Children Undergoing Tonsillectomy

Introduction: Surgery creates anxiety for children, whose control and reduction are among the objectives of nursing care. Nurses have always sought scientific evidence for the use of innovative techniques appropriate for the level of understanding, recognition, and need of children, such as the use of poetry to reduce children's anxiety. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the effects singing songs about preoperative care for tonsillectomy on the anxiety of children undergoing tonsillectomy. Method: This quasi-experimental non-random study recruited 76 children aged 7-12 years old presenting to the hospital for tonsillectomy were selected with a convenience sampling method. In addition to the routine care, some songs were sung to children in the intervention group about pre- and post-operative procedures before, on the day of, and after the surgery. Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) was filled out before and after the surgery and on the day of discharge in the intervention and control groups in order to measure children's anxiety. Data were analyzed in SPSS software using Chi-square, Mann-Whitney, and Fisher’s exact tests. Results: The results showed that the mean and standard deviation of anxiety in both groups (control=19.57 ± 3.65; intervention=19.78 ± 4.87) were not significantly different before the intervention (P=0.48), while a significant difference (P<0.001) was observed on the day of surgery between the two groups (control=34.28 ± 5.68; intervention=26.97 ± 4.6). Conclusion: Nurses can sing songs about pre- and post-operative procedures as an easy, inexpensive way appropriate for children’s level of development to reduce their anxiety. Furthermore, the family’s engagement in pre-operative training in an innovative manner can be a step forward in the development of family-based care.