Scoping Review of Education for Women About Return to Driving After Abdominal Surgery.

Publisher: Elsevier Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 8503123 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1552-6909 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00900311 NLM ISO Abbreviation: J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: 2016- : New York : Elsevier
Original Publication: [Philadelphia, PA] : J.B. Lippincott, [c1985-

Digestive System Surgical Procedures* ; Automobile Driving*; Adolescent ; Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Pregnancy ; Young Adult ; Patient Education as Topic

Objective: To conduct a scoping review to examine the evidence on education provided to women about when to return to driving after abdominal surgery and to assess variation in this education by type of abdominal surgery and source of education.
Data Sources: We searched MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Embase, Scopus, and CINAHL for peer-reviewed articles. We searched the publications of professional associations, clinical guidelines, driver's licensing agencies, and clinical trial registries for gray literature. Searches generated 2,908 peer-reviewed titles and abstracts and 20 documents in the gray literature.
Study Selection: We included articles and documents published in English in which authors reported education, advice, counseling, or recommendations about return to driving after abdominal surgery for women ages 16 to 50 years.
Data Extraction: We identified 16 peer-reviewed articles and eight documents in the gray literature. We extracted data including the title, authors, country of origin, study design, study purpose, sample size, type of abdominal surgery, education about return to driving, source of evidence to support the education, source of education, outcomes, and relevance to the review question.
Data Synthesis: We found that recommendations about when to return to driving after abdominal surgery ranged from 1 to 10 weeks after surgery, and 6 weeks after surgery was the most common. Recommended times were shorter for laparoscopic surgeries and longer for nonlaparoscopic surgeries, including cesarean. Most recommendations were provided by health care providers, and some recommendations were provided in leaflets. Evidence to support these recommendations was limited, and they were based on common sense, traditional practice, perceptions of insurance policies, a women's comfort level, or her ability to deploy the emergency brake.
Conclusion: Education provided to women about return to driving after abdominal surgery varies substantially and has a weak evidence base.
Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest The authors report no conflicts of interest or relevant financial relationships.
(Copyright © 2022 AWHONN, the Association of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Keywords: abdomen; automobile driving; cesarean; patient education; postoperative period; standard of care; surgery; women

Date Created: 20221204 Date Completed: 20230309 Latest Revision: 20230313

20240105

10.1016/j.jogn.2022.11.002

36463949