A lower anxiety questionnaire score and deeper sedation are separate findings.
The study compared combined spinal-epidural anesthesia with and without remimazolam. State-anxiety ratings were lower before leaving the operating room and at twenty-four hours in the combined group. Intraoperative sedation scores also indicated a deeper state.
The sample was small and follow-up short. Ratings obtained around sedation can reflect timing, recall and other treatment effects. A questionnaire difference does not independently identify the biological mechanism or prove sustained improvement in anxiety disorders.
State when the anxiety assessment occurred and how alert the patient was. The findings cannot establish an individual’s capacity, distress or later memory from a score alone. Review baseline anxiety, communication and co-medications alongside the observed perioperative course.
Source: PMC12476758, supplied full-text paper. Findings are paraphrased; forensic implications are an interpretation.
Related: Intranasal Remimazolam Dose-Finding Defined Success With a Pediatric Sedation Scale.