Does Reduction Of Disposable Drape Contact Areas Alleviate Pain During Drape Removal After Phacoemulsification?

Mariam Iamsukhon,BSN,RN.¹
Wariya Chermkhunthod,BSN,RN.¹
Orathai Jindarsri,BSN,RN.¹
Parima Hirunwiwatkul,MD.²

¹Department of Nursing, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, The Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok, Thailand.
²Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Purpose: To compare the degree of pain during disposable drape removal between the original drape and the newly-made reduced contact area drape.

Methods: Patients scheduled for phacoemulsification with intraocular lens implantation were randomised to receive either the original sticky disposable drape (Group A) or the reduced area of stickiness drape (Group B). Immediately after the surgery, the patients rated the pain occuring during drape removal by using visual analogue scale (0-100 mm). Leakage of drape, eyelash and eyebrow loss, and postoperative infection were recorded. Descriptive and analytic statistics were used.

Results: A total of 400 eyes from 400 patients were recruited (201 eyes in Group A and 199 eyes in Group B). The mean (SD) pain score in Group A were significantly higher in Group B (meanA (SDA) VS meanB (SDB), p = 0.028). Drape leakage and loss of lashes were not significantly different (p = 0.558 and 0.392, respectively). None of the patients in both groups developed postoperative infection.

Conclusions: Reduction of disposable drape contact area alleviates pain during drape removal after phacoemulsification.