{"id":619501,"date":"2026-09-09T17:16:10","date_gmt":"2026-09-09T17:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/619501\/"},"modified":"2026-09-09T17:16:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-09T17:16:10","slug":"mental-health-care-before-after-surgery-improves-recovery-in-older-adults-washu-medicine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/619501\/","title":{"rendered":"Mental health care before, after surgery improves recovery in older adults \u2013 WashU Medicine"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\tVisit the News Hub<\/a><\/p>\n

Clinical trial supports adding mental health coaching, medication cleanup to routine pre-surgical care<\/p>\n

\"imageGetty images<\/p>\n

A clinical trial led by WashU Medicine researchers found that combining mental health coaching with medication optimization reduced post-surgery anxiety and depression in older adults. <\/p>\n

Facing major surgery is stressful, but for older adults, unaddressed anxiety and depression can impede physical recovery.<\/p>\n

A clinical trial led by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found that starting an intervention before surgery \u2014\u00a0one that combines mental health coaching with optimization of medications that may increase risks for older adults \u2014 reduces post-surgery anxiety and depression.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe time around surgery is a window of both risk and opportunity,\u201d said the study\u2019s first author Joanna Abraham, PhD<\/a>, a professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at WashU Medicine. \u201cThe stress of surgery can worsen anxiety and depression symptoms and affect patients\u2019 recovery and overall health, but it also offers a critical opportunity to identify these concerns proactively and connect patients with the support they need.\u201d<\/p>\n

The study, published Sept. 9 in JAMA Network Open, supports including mental health care and medication optimization into routine pre-surgical care.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recognize the importance of getting the body into shape before surgery, but preparing the mind and the brain is just as important,\u201d said the study\u2019s senior author Eric J. Lenze, MD<\/a>, the Wallace and Lucille K. Renard Professor of Psychiatry and head of the WashU Medicine Department of Psychiatry. \u201cPatients undergoing major surgery hope for a better life afterward, and our study shows that taking care of emotional well-being and optimizing medications can help deliver that outcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Addressing emotional distress, high-risk medications<\/p>\n

Up to 33% of older surgical patients in the U.S. experience depression, and 22% experience anxiety before surgery. In addition, older patients are frequently on multiple drugs that affect the brain, including sedatives, muscle relaxants or over-the-counter sleep aids. Without routine re-evaluation for safety or necessity, these prescriptions can accumulate and increase risks such as sedation, confusion and falls, and high-risk medications can also raise an older patient\u2019s odds of post-surgery confusion, dangerous falls and long-term physical pain.<\/p>\n

Traditional perioperative care \u2014 the care patients receive before, during and after surgery \u2014 focuses on physical healing, often leaving emotional distress untreated, explained Lenze. To close this gap, the researchers designed and tested a practical care model for older adults facing surgery. They conducted the clinical trial through WashU Medicine\u2019s Center for Perioperative Mental Health<\/a>, whose mission is to integrate holistic mental health care and medication optimization into routine surgical medicine.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe results of this trial suggest that anesthesiology and psychiatry can unite to treat surgical patients more holistically, pioneering a practical blueprint that hospital systems nationwide can use to improve recovery after invasive procedures.\u201d Michael S. Avidan, MBBCh, WashU Medicine<\/p>\n

The study analyzed 306 adults aged 60 and older who were scheduled for cardiac, oncologic or orthopedic surgery in hospitals across the BJC HealthCare system. Screened patients who reported mild to moderate symptoms of depression and anxiety were enrolled in the study.<\/p>\n

The patients were randomly assigned to one of two groups. In addition to receiving educational materials on mindfulness, sleep and brain health, the intervention group talked with a dedicated wellness coach \u2014 a trained mental health professional such as a social worker or mental health counselor \u2014 over eight to 12 phone sessions. They also received a personalized review by pharmacists and doctors to safely optimize doses of high-risk medications. The control group only received the self-help materials to read independently, which is the standard approach to pre-surgical care.<\/p>\n

The researchers found that three months after surgery, patients receiving the intervention experienced a 2.2-to-2.5-point greater reduction in symptoms of depression and anxiety compared with patients given educational materials alone, using a 48-point scale. Older adults undergoing cancer surgery experienced the strongest mental health improvements, scoring nearly 5 points lower than the control group.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, patients reported positive experiences with the extra care, both from the wellness providers and the pharmacists who worked to eliminate unnecessary medications.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat makes this care model so promising is that it\u2019s practical to deliver,\u201d said Abraham. \u201cPatients and healthcare providers found the program manageable and easy to integrate into existing surgical workflows. Proactive mental health care doesn\u2019t have to burden the hospital system.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, making that shift requires clinical specialties to break out of traditional silos to coordinate care before surgery.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday\u2019s perioperative care models do not adequately address mental health needs and challenges faced by older adults,\u201d added Michael S. Avidan, MBBCh<\/a>, the Dr. Seymour and Rose T. Brown Professor of Anesthesiology, who serves as the Center\u2019s co-director with Lenze. \u201cThe results of this trial suggest that anesthesiology and psychiatry can unite to treat surgical patients more holistically, pioneering a practical blueprint that hospital systems nationwide can use to improve recovery after invasive procedures.\u201d<\/p>\n

Abraham J, Holzer KJ, Haroutounian S, Pennington B, Baumann A, Calfee R, Cordner T, Freedland KE, Kannampallil T, Kozower B, Lenard E, Miller JP, Politi M, Yingling M, Avidan MS, Lenze EJ. Perioperative depression and anxiety care in older patients: a randomized clinical trial. September 9, 2026. JAMA Network Open. doi:10.1001\/jamanetworkopen.2026.32619<\/p>\n

Conflict of Interest Disclosures: Kannampallil reported receiving funding from Elsevier Inc and serving as an unpaid consultant for Abridge Inc. Politi reported receiving personal fees from UCB Biopharma and Epi-Q Inc outside the submitted work. Lenze reported receiving grants from Pritikin ICR, Balvi Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, and XPRIZE Foundation outside the submitted work. No other disclosures were reported.<\/p>\n

This research was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which established the Center for Perioperative Mental Health at WashU Medicine, grant number P50MH122351; the Foundation for Barnes-Jewish Hospital; and the Taylor Family Institute for Innovative Psychiatric Treatments. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official view of the NIH.<\/p>\n

About WashU Medicine<\/p>\n

WashU Medicine<\/a> is a global leader in academic medicine, including biomedical research, patient care and educational programs with 3,100 faculty. Its National Institutes of Health (NIH) research funding portfolio is the second largest among U.S. medical schools and has grown 78% since 2016. Together with institutional investment, WashU Medicine commits over $1.6 billion annually to basic and clinical research innovation and training. Its faculty practice is consistently among the top five in the country, with more than 2,550 faculty physicians practicing at 200 locations. WashU Medicine physicians exclusively staff Barnes-Jewish<\/a> and St. Louis Children\u2019s<\/a> hospitals \u2014 the academic hospitals of BJC HealthCare<\/a> \u2014 and Siteman Cancer Center<\/a>, a partnership between BJC HealthCare and WashU Medicine and the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in Missouri and southern Illinois. WashU Medicine physicians also treat patients at BJC\u2019s community hospitals in our region. With a storied history in MD\/PhD training, WashU Medicine recently dedicated $100 million to scholarships and curriculum renewal for its medical students, and is home to top-notch training programs in every medical subspecialty as well as physical therapy, occupational therapy, and audiology and communications sciences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Visit the News Hub Clinical trial supports adding mental health coaching, medication cleanup to routine pre-surgical care Getty…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":619502,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[262893,103,61,60,262894,410,411,262895],"class_list":["post-619501","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mental-health","tag-eric-lenze","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-joanna-abraham","tag-mental-health","tag-mentalhealth","tag-michael-avidan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=619501"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/619501\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/619502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=619501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=619501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=619501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}