Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41500193›Full record

Observational studyAnaesthesia2026

Patient-reported outcomes, postoperative pain and pain relief after day-case surgery (POPPY): baseline data from day surgery practice in the UK.

Martha Belete, Adam B Brayne, Harriet Daykin, Matthew Everson, William M Hare, Anna Ratcliffe, Lexy Sorrell, POPPY study delivery group, Mark Rockett, Research and Audit Federation of Anaesthetists in Training

Abstract readObservational StudyMulticenter Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in Anaesthesia, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Observational
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Martha BeleteDepartment of Anaesthetics, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, Torbay, Devon, UK.
Adam B BrayneDepartment of Anaesthesia and pain medicine, University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust, Plymouth, UK.
Harriet DaykinSouth West Anaesthesia Research Matrix, UK.
Matthew EversonSouth West Anaesthesia Research Matrix, UK.
William M HareSouth West Anaesthesia Research Matrix, UK.
Anna RatcliffeDepartment of Anaesthetics, Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, Torbay, Devon, UK.
Lexy SorrellFaculty of Health, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK.
POPPY study delivery group
Mark RockettDepartment of Anaesthesia and pain medicine, University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust, Plymouth, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8907-4396
Research and Audit Federation of Anaesthetists in Training

Funding

British association of day surgeryNational Institute of Academic Anaesthesia NIAA22R203University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionMost patients undergoing elective surgery in the UK are discharged from hospital on the same day. Despite this, there is a lack of UK patient-centred outcome measures relating to quality of recovery, pain and analgesic use. The POPPY study was a UK-wide prospective, observational study measuring short- and longer-term patient-reported outcomes following day-case surgery. This article is the second in a series and describes baseline characteristics to contextualise successive articles which explore outcome data.

methodsBaseline data were collected from eligible consenting adults undergoing day-case surgery. Data included patient characteristics; pre-operative analgesic use; pre-existing pain surgical and anaesthetic details; and quality of life scores. Descriptive analysis was performed to provide baseline characteristics of the study cohort.

resultsA total of 9618 patients were eligible on screening from 199 sites, with 7839 eligible following exclusions. Unplanned admission following surgery was the most common reason for exclusion, affecting 1131/9618 (11.8%) patients. Unplanned admission was more likely with increasing surgical magnitude, frailty and higher ASA physical status. Some common operations had admission rates of > 50%. Pain at the site of proposed surgery was reported by 3060/7839 (39%) patients and this was chronic pain in 2387/7839 (30.5%). Opioids were taken at least daily by 885/7839 (11.3%) patients, 1109/7839 (14.1%) were receiving treatment for depression and 1039/7839 (13.3%) were receiving treatment for anxiety. Anxiety or depression was rated as moderate or worse in 1002/7839 (12.8%) patients. DISCUSSION: In the UK, over a third of patients presenting for day-case surgery are in pain, which is mostly chronic in duration. One in four have access to opioid medications and a little over one in 10 are using opioids daily. More than one in 10 do not receive their planned surgery as a day-case and readmission rates for day-case surgery do not meet suggested targets.

Indexed as

Ambulatory Surgical ProceduresPain ManagementPatient Reported Outcome MeasuresPostoperative PainAdultAgedAged, 80 and overAnalgesicsFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPain MeasurementProspective StudiesQuality of LifeUnited KingdomAnalgesicsacute painchronic painday‐case surgerymental healthopioids

Identifiers

PMID41500193
PMCPMC12973345

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.