Psychiatrist Notes How Mental Health Parallels Surgical Outcomes

Psychiatrist Liat Jarkon, D.O., director of the Center for Behavioral Health, appears on a News12 segment about correlations between mental health and recovery from surgical procedures. Jarkon states that, according to studies, poor preoperative mental health negatively affects surgical outcomes. When not in a healthy state of mind, patients are more likely to suffer from increased pain, complications, and prolonged recovery times.

“With stress, certain hormones are elevated—like cortisol—and increased cortisol can be very detrimental to wound healing,” Jarkon says. “It’s important to have psychological support throughout the process.” To prevent poor outcomes, Jarkon suggests that patient and physician maintain open, honest conversations so that mental health symptoms may be appropriately treated.