Abstract: Objective To evaluate the effect of brochure on anesthesia related discomfort and satisfaction for patients undergoing general anesthesia. Methods A selected scale was translated and modified. One hundred and sixty patients scheduled for selective thyroid surgery with general anesthesia in Peking Union Medical College Hospital were randomly assigned to two groups, 80 patients received brochure before preoperational visit (brochure group) and 80 patients did not (control group). Questionnaires which used for evaluating patients’ anesthesia related discomfort and satisfaction were completed on the second postoperative day. Results Internal consistency, as measured by Cronbach’s α was 0.830. Content Validity Index (CVI) was 0.960. The most common anesthesia related discomfort were “pain at the site of surgery”(84.4%), “sore throat”(79.1%), “drowsiness“(75%) and “thirst”(69.4%). The data on patient satisfaction showed a high degree of satisfaction (>90%), the most dissatisfaction were “treatment of PONV” (22.5%) and “pain therapy after surgery” (15.0%). There was no significant difference in anesthesia related discomfort between the two groups. Compared with the control group, patients in brochure group had significantly higher satisfaction with “information given” and “satisfaction in general” (P<0.05). Conclusion Brochure can improve patients’ satisfaction with information given and anesthetic care in general, but it could not significantly alter patients’ anesthesia related discomfort.

Key words: anesthesia, brochure, satisfaction, discomfort