anxiety; preoperative period; questionnaires; test anxiety scales

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to validate the Czech version of the Amsterdam Preoperative Anxiety and Information Scale (APAIS) in adult patients undergoing elective surgery.Design: A cross-sectional study.Methods: Data were collected from July 2012 to January 2013. For reliability and validity testing, two instruments measuring preoperative anxiety were administered to the participants on the same occasion, (APAIS and the Spielberg State Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S)). The sample consisted of 344 patients undergoing elective surgery.Findings: Reliability of APAIS anxiety subscale measured by Cronbach's alpha was 0.91. Reliability of APAIS information subscale measured by Cronbach's alpha was 0.78. The APAIS anxiety subscale correlated significantly with the STAI-S (0.69). Women scored significantly higher on anxiety scales than men.Conclusions: APAIS may be a useful tool to measure preoperative anxiety in Czech patients undergoing elective surgery.