Pain in post coronary artery bypass graft surgery patients: perceptions of physiotherapists in Australian and New Zealand hospitals

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Physiotherapy treatment for patients undergoing Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery involves pre operative education, and post-operative breathing exercises and coughing, early mobilisation and musculoskeletal exercises to prevent pulmonary complication and to aid in discharge from the hospital and return to activity in timely manner. Pain post CABG may be from surgical trauma, multiple cannulas including chest drains, and harvesting of internal mammary arteries (IMAs). Ferguson et al reported that health professionals often underestimate pain the post CABG patients experience. The most common area the patients experience pain post CABG is the chest, where there is surgical wound, and also where chest drains have been. Studies have shown that CABG patients have limited ability to cough and perform breathing exercises, general activity and ambulation due to severe pain post surgery. There have been six surveys studying physiotherapy practice in Australia and New Zealand, Sweden, the UK and Canada, however, none of these surveys provided information on physiotherapists’ perception of patients’ pain post CABG, or whether physiotherapists believed pain was a limiting factor for patients to reach walking milestone and what guidelines were used to establish milestones for distance to mobilise patients This study will enable the investigators to collect data on physiotherapists’ perception of CABG patients’ pain post surgery in Australian and New Zealand hospitals. The survey will also identify whether physiotherapists believe pain limits patients walking distance and whether they believe pain management post CABG is adequate. Hypothesis: Physiotherapists perceive that patients undergoing CABG surgery experience significant pain, therefore it impacts on their walking distance in Australia and New Zealand hospitals.

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