Observational Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastrointest Surg. May 27, 2025; 17(5): 105239
Published online May 27, 2025. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v17.i5.105239
Thirst experience and nursing needs in older patients after general anesthesia for gastrointestinal surgery: A qualitative study
Ting Li, Wen-Hui Dong, Shuo Wang, Ying Wu, Shu-Yan Wang
Ting Li, Wen-Hui Dong, Wuxi Medical College, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, Jiangsu Province, China
Shuo Wang, Shu-Yan Wang, Department of Anesthesiology, Tongren Hospital Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200336, China
Ying Wu, Department of Nursing, Tongren Hospital Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200336, China
Co-corresponding authors: Ying Wu and Shu-Yan Wang.
Author contributions: Li T, Wang SY, and Wu Y contributed to research design and manuscript writing; Li T and Dong WH collected and analyzed the data; Li T, Dong WH, and Wang S contributed to data collection; Wang SY and Wu Y provided overall supervision of the study; all authors contributed to the manuscript and approved the final version. The reasons for designating Wang SY and Wu Y as co-corresponding authors are threefold: Firstly, they possess expertise in the fields of anesthesiology and nursing, offering crucial professional support and advice for the research; secondly, they serve as leaders and mentors within the research team, playing key organizational and guidance roles throughout the project; lastly, their contributions to reviewing and revising this manuscript are equal. In summary, all authors contributed by analyzing and presenting the research from multiple professional perspectives, ensuring the breadth and depth of the research findings.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by The Shanghai Tongren Hospital Ethics Committee (No. 2025-006-01).
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest to disclose.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement—a checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-a checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Shu-Yan Wang, PhD, Associate Chief Physician, Department of Anesthesiology, Tongren Hospital Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, No. 1111 Xianxia Road, Changning District, Shanghai 200336, China. wsy2785@shtrhospital.com
Received: January 18, 2025
Revised: February 28, 2025
Accepted: March 17, 2025
Published online: May 27, 2025
Processing time: 127 Days and 17.8 Hours
Core Tip

Core Tip: This qualitative study investigated the thirst experience and nursing needs of elderly patients after general anesthesia for gastrointestinal surgery, particularly in the post-anesthesia care unit. The results revealed that such patients frequently suffered from intense, persistent thirst, along with emotional distress such as anxiety and irritability. Although some nursing interventions were implemented, they were insufficient in alleviating the discomfort. The findings emphasize the importance of timely, effective nursing support and suggest a multidisciplinary approach to address thirst-related needs to enhance patient comfort and recovery.