Effect of Stress Ball Application During Coronary Angiography on Anxiety, Procedure-related Fear, Physiological Parameters, and Comfort

July 23, 2026 updated by: Gamze BOZKUL, Tarsus University

Effect of Stress Ball Application During Coronary Angiography on Anxiety, Procedure-related Fear, Physiological Parameters, and Comfort: a Randomized Controlled Trial

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of stress ball application during coronary angiography on anxiety, procedure-related fear, physiological parameters, and comfort. The study is designed as a prospective, randomized controlled clinical trial. The study population will consist of patients scheduled to undergo coronary angiography at Tarsus State Hospital. The sample size was calculated based on the post-test anxiety score effect size (Cohen's d = 0.43) reported in the study by Yüksel and Güneş (2024), which examined the effect of stress ball application on anxiety and pain levels during angiography procedures. Using a significance level of α = 0.05 and a statistical power of 90% (1-β = 0.90), the required sample size was calculated as 59 participants. To account for potential attrition, the sample size was increased by 10%, resulting in a final sample of 64 participants (intervention group: n = 32; control group: n = 32). Data will be collected using the Descriptive Characteristics Form, State Anxiety Inventory, Procedure-Related Fear Scale, Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form, and Comfort Assessment Form. Upon admission to the coronary angiography unit and before the procedure, all participants will complete the Descriptive Characteristics Form, State Anxiety Inventory, Procedure-Related Fear Scale, and Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form. These assessments will be administered by researcher NÇ.

In addition to routine care, patients in the intervention group will be instructed to squeeze a medium-resistance stress ball, hold the squeeze while counting to five, then release it, and repeat this cycle throughout the angiography procedure. Researcher GB will be responsible for implementing the intervention.

Patients in the control group will receive only the unit's standard care. Routine care includes pre-procedural patient education, assessment of vital signs, verification of intravenous line patency, preparation of the vascular access site, and standard patient monitoring throughout the procedure. Care will be provided according to the standard care protocol routinely implemented in the hospital's coronary angiography unit.

Immediately after the procedure, the State Anxiety Inventory, Procedure-Related Fear Scale, Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form, and Comfort Assessment Form will be administered by researcher NÇ.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of stress ball application during coronary angiography on anxiety, procedure-related fear, physiological parameters, and comfort. The study is designed as a prospective, randomized controlled clinical trial. The study population will consist of patients scheduled to undergo coronary angiography at Tarsus State Hospital. The sample size was calculated based on the post-test anxiety score effect size (Cohen's d = 0.43) reported in the study by Yüksel and Güneş (2024), which examined the effect of stress ball application on anxiety and pain levels during angiography procedures. Using a significance level of α = 0.05 and a statistical power of 90% (1-β = 0.90), the required sample size was calculated as 59 participants. To account for potential attrition, the sample size was increased by 10%, resulting in a final sample of 64 participants (intervention group: n = 32; control group: n = 32). Data will be collected using the Descriptive Characteristics Form, State Anxiety Inventory, Procedure-Related Fear Scale, Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form, and Comfort Assessment Form. Upon admission to the coronary angiography unit and before the procedure, all participants will complete the Descriptive Characteristics Form, State Anxiety Inventory, Procedure-Related Fear Scale, and Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form. These assessments will be administered by researcher NÇ.

In addition to routine care, patients in the intervention group will be instructed to squeeze a medium-resistance stress ball, hold the squeeze while counting to five, then release it, and repeat this cycle throughout the angiography procedure. Researcher GB will be responsible for implementing the intervention.

Patients in the control group will receive only the unit's standard care. Routine care includes pre-procedural patient education, assessment of vital signs, verification of intravenous line patency, preparation of the vascular access site, and standard patient monitoring throughout the procedure. Care will be provided according to the standard care protocol routinely implemented in the hospital's coronary angiography unit.

Immediately after the procedure, the State Anxiety Inventory, Procedure-Related Fear Scale, Physiological Parameters Monitoring Form, and Comfort Assessment Form will be administered by researcher NÇ.

To ensure researcher safety during data collection, all procedures will be conducted in accordance with clinical workplace regulations. Researchers will comply with hospital infection prevention and control measures and will use appropriate personal protective equipment whenever necessary. As data collection will take place in the coronary angiography unit, researchers will also adhere to radiation safety regulations by minimizing their presence within the fluoroscopy field during the procedure and using lead aprons and other radiation-protective equipment whenever required. Furthermore, all data collection activities will be performed in accordance with the institution's occupational health and safety procedures.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

64

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Aged 18 years or older, as verified by medical records and official identification.
  • Scheduled to undergo elective coronary angiography, as confirmed by the patient's medical records.
  • Conscious, oriented, and cooperative, as assessed by the researcher during the pre-procedural interview.
  • Able and willing to provide written informed consent after receiving information about the study.
  • Able to speak Turkish and understand and respond to the questions asked during the study.
  • No visual, hearing, or speech impairment that would interfere with communication.
  • No motor or sensory impairment of the hand or arm that would prevent the use of a stress ball, as assessed through patient self-report and clinical observation.
  • No diagnosed anxiety disorder and no self-reported history of receiving psychiatric treatment for anxiety.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Decline to participate or request to withdraw from the study at any stage.
  • Undergo emergency coronary angiography.
  • Have cognitive, communication, or physical impairments that prevent completion of the data collection instruments or participation in the study procedures.
  • Develop clinical complications during or after the procedure that preclude implementation of the study protocol.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Experimental group
In addition to routine care, participants in the intervention group will be instructed to squeeze a medium-resistance stress ball, hold the squeeze while counting to five, then release it, and repeat this cycle throughout the procedure. Researcher GB will be responsible for administering the intervention.
Other: Stress ball
participants in the intervention group will be instructed to squeeze a medium-resistance stress ball, hold the squeeze while counting to five, then release it, and repeat this cycle throughout the procedure. Researcher GB will be responsible for administering the intervention.
No Intervention: Control group
Participants in the control group will receive the unit's standard care only. As part of routine care, patients will receive pre-procedural education. Before the procedure, vital signs will be assessed, intravenous line patency will be verified, and the vascular access site will be prepared. Standard patient monitoring will be maintained throughout the procedure. All care will be provided in accordance with the standard care protocol routinely implemented in the institution's coronary angiography unit.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Anxiety
Time Frame: 10 months
The State Anxiety Scale : In this study, the DAQ, which is structured to measure momentary feelings, was used. Its Turkish validity and reliability was conducted by Öner and Le Compte in 1983. The DAQ consists of 20 questions on a four-point Likert scale. The statements in the DAQ are evaluated as not at all (1), a little (2), a lot (3) and completely (4). In this section, the statements are divided into direct and reversed statements. Inverted statements: 1st, 2nd, 5th, 5th, 8th, 8th, 10th, 11th, 15th, 16th, 19th, 20th items. The total score of the reversed statements is subtracted from the total score of the direct statements and the number 50, which is the invariant value of the DAQ, is added to the value obtained and the DAQ score is calculated. The scale score ranges between 20-80 and an increase in the score indicates an increase in the level of anxiety.
10 months
Procedure-related Fear
Time Frame: 10 months
Patients' fear will be assessed using a visual analog scale (VAS) ranging from 0 to 10; 0 represents "No fear at all," and 10 represents "Maximum fear." The minimum possible score is 0, and the maximum score is 10. Higher total scores indicate a higher level of fear experienced by the patient during or prior to the procedure.
10 months
Physiological Parameters
Time Frame: 10 months
It is a form used to record patients' Physiological Parameters before and after the procedure.
10 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Comfort
Time Frame: 10 months
Patients will assess their comfort using a 10-cm Visual Analog Scale (VAS) ranging from 0 to 10 (Wewers & Lowe, 1990). A score of 0 indicates "Not comfortable at all," whereas a score of 10 indicates "Extremely comfortable." The total score ranges from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating greater perceived comfort.
10 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Tarsus University

Investigators

  • Study Director: Gamze Bozkul, Tarsus University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

August 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

July 20, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 20, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

July 23, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 24, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 23, 2026

Last Verified

July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • TU-BOZKUL-020

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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