Measures to improve the comfort of cataract surgery patients: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Improving patient comfort can provide patients with a better experience during surgery and reflect the high-quality of hospital medical services. This study conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of several recent academic reports on improving patient comfort in cataract surgery to provide a guide for clinical diagnosis and treatment. Methods: PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science were searched for reports on measures to improve the comfort of cataract patients. The retrieved reports were for randomized controlled studies published after January 2000. They were selected by two researchers and evaluated using the Jadad scale. The reports were then grouped according to the interventions used in the studies. Stata 16.0 software (StataCorp, TX, USA) was used to analyze the improvement noted with each intervention. Results: Nineteen reports were included in this review, covering a total of 3,378 patients with cataract surgery. Results showed that the implementation of high- quality nursing techniques could reduce postoperative pain [standard mean difference (SMD) =-1.19; 95% confidence interval (CI): -1.96 to -0.43; P=0.002], the use of anxiolytic drugs (melatonin) could reduce postoperative anxiety in cataract patients (SMD =-0.55; 95% CI: -0.95 to -0.15; P=0.007), and there was no significant difference in the topical anesthetic drugs used to improve patient comfort [odds ratio (OR) =0.66; 95% CI: 0.31 to 1.40; P=0.276]. Discussion: During the perioperative period of cataract surgery, high-quality nursing techniques (preoperative video and audio education, limb massage or back massage, listening to soothing music) can reduce pain and anxiety. Anti-anxiety agents and preoperative sedatives can alleviate anxiety and improve comfort, but they are suitable for patients with high anxiety. What kind of surface anesthetic drugs are used in operation has no obvious help to improve comfort.