Pressure ulcer incidence and risk factors in ventilated intensive care patients

Background: Pressure ulcers (PUs) continue to be a major health care problem. Purpose: The aim of the present study was to determine the incidence and risk factors of PUs in ventilated patients in two medical /surgical ICUs in Athens, Greece. Materials and Methods: A prospective study in two medical/surgical ICUs was conducted. Two hundred sixteen patients with more than 48 hours on mechanical ventilation (MV) were enrolled during the studied period. The PUs of patients were measured according to the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP). Results: incidence and incidence density of PUs was 29,6%, 14 cases per 1000 mechanical ventilation days and 13,9 cases per 1000 patient- days of ICU stay respectively. Logistic regression identified that the Cubbin and Jackson scale score ≤29(OR 0.015, CI 95%, 0.005-0.050, P 20 days (OR 7.225, CI 95%, 2.461-21.207, P 20 days. Cubbin and Jackson scale is a useful risk assessment scale for the early identifying of ventilated patients at risk for PU and the implementation of an intervention PU bundle. These interventions will contribute to reducing the incidence of PU and improvement of the quality of care for medical/surgical ICUs ventilated patients.

Author(s): Apostolopoulou Eleni

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