The Effects of Perioperative Painting Art Therapy (LOM® Solution Centered Art Therapy) in Surgical Patients

The interest in alternative and complementary medical treatments has increased significantly in recent years and several studies showed a positive effect on the healing process of patients undergoing surgery. Painting art therapy represents another possible form of such a complementary medical treatment. However, the effect in the context of major abdominal surgical interventions has not yet been investigated, which is why the investigators are conducting this study. Selected patients referred to the Department of Visceral and Transplantation Surgery with operable pathologies of the pancreatic and the lower gastrointestinal tract are subjected to perioperative painting art therapy. It is carried out according to the protocol of (LOM® Solution Centered Art Therapy) by trained painting art therapists. The investigators want to evaluate the effectiveness of perioperative painting art therapy by analyzing the results of several questionnaires regarding anxiety and depression levels as well as health related patient data to observe the short/long term outcome and the psychological well-being of patients undergoing major surgery in case of carcinoma. The aim of the study is to assess if painting art therapy, more precisely the LOM®-method, is effective in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients undergoing surgery. When it appears that the application of perioperative painting art therapy has a major influence on the postoperative outcome in cancer patients, some patients could benefit from a noninvasive, low-risk and easy additional treatment option. This study is a collaboration with the Institute of Complementary and Integrative medicine of the University Hospital Zurich.