Tehran University of Medical Sciences Iranian Journal of Psychiatry 1735-4587 3 4 2008 12 15 20 24 Narges Alirezaei Psychiatry & Psychology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Bahar Ashjaei Department of Pediatrics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Zahra Shahrivar Department of Psychiatry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Fatemeh Moharari Department of Psychiatry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Javad Mahmoudi-gharaei Psychiatry & Psychology Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Jaleh Parizad Department of Pediatrics, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran 2015 10 17 Objective: Many studies have shown that the level of postoperative distress and anxiety in children is associated with the amount of anxiety during the pre operative period. In this study, we compared the effect of pre-operational attending in a playroom and using play activities on the level of anxiety increment after surgery in an intervention and a control group of Iranian children. Method: In a clinical trial, 75 children aged 5 to 12 enrolled in the intervention and the control group. The anxiety symptoms were assessed using State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children, Revised Children's Manifest Anxiety Scale, and Yale modified Pre operative Anxiety Scale. The mean differences of pre and post operative anxiety scores were calculated and compared using the ANCOVA statistical method. Results: The two groups had similar demographic characteristics except for age which was higher in the control group. The baseline anxiety score was lower in the intervention compare to the control group and was statistically significant. There was a significant reduction in the trend of anxiety increment after surgery in the intervention group in comparison to the control group. Conclusion: Attending in playrooms and using play activities may reduce the trend of increment in the anxiety level induced by surgical procedures. https://ijps.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijps/article/view/488 https://ijps.tums.ac.ir/index.php/ijps/article/download/488/512