The Effect of Preoperative Anxiety Level on Vasovagal Events During Spinal Anesthesia and the Incidence of Vasovagal Events

Spinal anesthesia is a frequently used anesthesia method in clinics because it creates a rapid and effective sensory and motor block by injecting a low dose of local anesthetic into the subarachnoid space. Its success rate is over 90%. Vasovagal syncope (neurocardiogenic syncope; sudden loss of consciousness due to decreased blood flow to the brain and arterial blood pressure through neural mechanisms as a result of vasodilation. In this condition, cardiac arrest may occur following the development of bradycardia and hypotension. It is assumed that syncope may be related to anxiety, emotional triggers, or pain, and that this triggers the parasympathetic pathway leading to hypotension and bradycardia. Psychogenic, intense sympathetic blockade is considered among the causes of vasovagal syncope during spinal or epidural anesthesia. The main aim of this research is to determine the anxiety levels of patients undergoing spinal anesthesia before surgery and to investigate the effect of this anxiety level on vasovagal events that may be observed during spinal anesthesia.