Table 1 Descriptions of Adverse Effects

Awake During Surgery

You are lying on your back in the Operating Room. You are wide-awake. You cannot see the surgery, but you can see people moving around the room, and can hear everything that goes on. Your operation is going on but you cannot feel or move the part that is being operated on. There is no pain.

Blood Transfusion

You are in the recovery room. Your surgery is finished and you feel fine. You are told that you were given two pints of blood from the blood bank during the surgery because you needed it.

Myalgia

It is the day after your surgery. All your muscles ache for the whole day, as if you had flu. The ache gets worse when you try to move, but you manage to get around

Nausea

You are lying on your side, awake and aware of your surroundings in the recovery room. You are extremely queasy, as if you were on a boat in rough seas. The least movement makes the nausea worse

Normal

You are lying on your back, awake and alert. You feel no pain or nausea, feel good and are ready to go home

Pain

You are lying on your back, awake and aware of your surroundings in the recovery room. Your surgical incision really hurts, as if a knife was stabbing you. Movement makes the pain worse, and no position seems to make it better

Pruritus

You are sitting up in your hospital bed after the operation. You feel itchy all over and have to scratch yourself often.

Somnolence

You are in the recovery room and are drifting off to sleep even though you want to stay awake. You are unable, despite your best effort, to stay awake long enough to tell the nurse how you are feeling

Urinary Retention

You are in the recovery room, awake and alert. You want to pass urine (water) but no matter how hard you try, none comes out

Vomiting

You are lying on your side, awake and aware of your surroundings in the recovery room. You feel waves of nausea and are throwing up. Your abdominal and chest muscles ache from vomiting