Mustafa KAVAK, Ahmet ÖZDEMİR, Serdar SARITAŞ, Semra BÜLBÜLOĞLU
Clinical and Experimental Health Sciences - 2026;16(1):132-136
Objective: Bariatric surgical treatment options have been used to achieve weight loss. Patients often experience thirst and fatigue postoperatively. Thirst is considered a relatively minor complication during the postoperative phase, and there are a limited number of studies on its effects on patients. The aim of this study is to determine the correlation between thirst and fatigue levels of patients after bariatric surgery. Methods: This study was conducted in the General Surgery Clinic of a University Hospital in East of Türkiye between June 2022 and July 2023. The study was completed with 284 patients who met the inclusion criteria. The Descriptive Characteristics Form, Numerical Rating Scale and Brief Fatigue Inventory were used in the study. Results: The patients had high levels of thirst and fatigue. A statistically significant positive correlation (r=0.623) was found between thirst and fatigue levels (p<.001). Regression analysis indicated that thirst explained 37% of the variance in fatigue. It can be asserted that as the thirst level of the patients increased, so did their fatigue levels. Conclusion: The study revealed that bariatric surgery patients suffered from postoperative thirst, which was significantly associated with higher fatigue levels. It is recommended that nurses evaluate the thirst-related fatigue experienced by bariatric surgery patients postoperatively.
