The Effect of Olfactory Mental Imagery and Cardiovascular Surgery

The Effect of Olfactory Mental Imagery on Physiological Parameters, Anxiety, and Symptoms After Cardiovascular Surgery

This study aims to examine the effect of olfactory mental imagery on physiological parameters, anxiety and symptoms after cardiovascular surgery.

This study was planned to be conducted as a prospective randomized controlled study in the Cardiovascular Surgery service of Istanbul Mehmet Akif Ersoy Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Training and Research Hospital. The universe of the research; It will consist of patients who are hospitalized in the cardiovascular surgery service and who have undergone cardiovascular surgery. The sample will consist of a total of 90 patients hospitalized in the Cardiovascular Surgery service of the same hospital and meeting the inclusion criteria for the study.

Patient Diagnosis Form, Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form, State Anxiety Inventory and Cardiac Surgery Symptom Inventory will be used to collect data. Data will be collected on days 1, 2, 3 and 4 after surgery. In the study, patients will be divided into two groups: intervention (n = 45) and control (n = 45). The intervention group will perform breathing exercises with the olfactory mental imagery technique.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Elective surgery is planned,
• There is no smell problem,
• No loss of visual and auditory functions,
• No previous hospital history,
• No serious head trauma or nasal injury,
• No known psychiatric disease or history of anxiolytic drug use,
• Olfactory, capable of mental imagery

Exclusion Criteria:

• Presence of decreased level of consciousness,
• Having drainage over 200 ml per hour,
• Ejection fraction less than 30 percent,
• People with lung disease such as atelectasis and pneumonia,
• Systolic blood pressure is below 90 mmHg,
• Patients whose pain control cannot be achieved