The Effect of Head and Neck Stretching Exercises on Voice, Anxiety and Psychological Resilience After Thyroidectomy

The aim of this clinical randomized controlled trial is to evaluate the effects of head and neck stretching exercises performed after thyroidectomy on voice function, anxiety, and psychological resilience, and to examine the effectiveness of this intervention in adult patients undergoing thyroidectomy.

The primary questions to be answered are:

Do head and neck stretching exercises improve voice function (Voice Handicap Index) after thyroidectomy? Do head and neck stretching exercises reduce patients' anxiety levels and increase psychological resilience? As a comparison group, researchers will compare the effects of head and neck stretching exercises to a control group receiving only routine care to assess the effects of exercises on voice, anxiety, and psychological resilience.

Participants will be asked to participate in the following procedures:

Patients in the experimental group will undergo head and neck stretching exercises in the early post-thyroidectomy period.

Voice function, anxiety, and psychological resilience will be measured in both groups before surgery and at postoperative day 1, week 1, week 2, and month 1.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Effects of Post-Thyroidectomy Head and Neck Stretching Exercises on Voice, Anxiety, and Psychological Resilience
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Structured patient education + neck stretching exercises

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 103
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Turkey (Türkiye)
  • Erzurum, Turkey (Türkiye), 25000
    • Atatürk University Research Hospital, Erzurum, Türkiye

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients aged between 18 and 65, with adequate cognitive functions, who could communicate in Turkish, and who volunteered to participate in the study were included in our study.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Individuals who had previously undergone partial thyroidectomy, had cervical problems before thyroidectomy, had current or previous voice disorders, or had any illness that could affect decision-making ability (psychological disorder, dementia, etc.) were not included in the study.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Sequential Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Education Group; Structured patient education + neck stretching exercises	Behavioral: Structured patient education + neck stretching exercises; The intervention is a nurse-led, structured patient education program based on the, combined with a supervised head-neck stretching exercise program. Unlike routine postoperative care, this intervention includes: (1) preoperative individualized education using the Teach-Back method, (2) a printed educational booklet specifically developed for thyroidectomy patients, and (3) a standardized 30-day head-neck stretching exercise program initiated in the early postoperative period (starting on postoperative day 1). The exercise program is performed daily at home with visual and written guidance. In addition, patients receive regular follow-up and reinforcement during the postoperative period. This comprehensive and multimodal structure distinguishes the intervention from standard care and other single-component educational approaches.
No Intervention: Control Group; routine care only

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
State Anxiety Level	State anxiety level will be measured using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI).	Preoperative, postoperative 1st day, 1st week, 2nd week and 1st month.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Ataturk University
• Investigators: Study Director: NEZİHA KARABULUT, Principal Investigator, Ataturk University Faculty of Nursing, Erzurum, Türkiye

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 12, 2023
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 12, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): January 12, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 29, 2025
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 29, 2025
• First Posted (Actual): December 11, 2025

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): December 11, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 29, 2025
• Last Verified: November 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Anxiety Disorders
• Other Study ID Numbers: B.30.2.ATA.0.01.00/359

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Individual participant data (IPD) will not be shared in order to protect participant confidentiality and because the ethical approval for this study limits data use to the current research purposes only.

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No