Aim: To determine the effect of cold application on pain experienced and analgesic requirement frequency in patients with post-thyroidectomy drains.

Material and Methods: This randomized controlled trial was carried out in a Training and Research Hospital General Surgery Department in Istanbul between 15 May and 20 November, 2016. Fifty-nine patients with drains inserted post-thyroidectomy were randomly divided into two groups. Cold application was performed on the experimental group three times, 3 hours after analgesic administration on post-operative day 0, and immediately before drain removal on post-operative day 1. A cold gel pad was placed on the neck area for 20 minutes. Pain severity was measured 15 minutes after the cold application. The control group did not receive cold therapy, but pain severity was also measured.

Results: The patients in the experimental group had less pain on post-operative day 0, although the difference was not statistically significant (p>0.001). The severity of pain experienced after the removal of the drain on post-operative day 1 was significantly lower in the experimental group (p<0.001). Analgesic requirement frequencies among patients in the experimental group were significantly lower on post-operative days 0 and 1 (p≤0.001).

Conclusion: Cold application reduced drain-related pain along with analgesic requirements. It can contribute to the healing process by reducing pain.