Factors associated with the incidence of pressure wounds in critical patients: a cohort study.
Andreza de Oliveira Teixeira, Lídia Miranda Brinati, Luana Vieira Toledo and 5 others
PMID 35766752WHAT IT FOUND
Forty-two of 369 ICU patients developed pressure wounds.
Staying over four days, a feeding tube, a urinary catheter, and a tracheostomy were linked with higher chance. High risk on the Braden score also raised chance.
Key findings
01In this ICU cohort, 42 of 369 patients developed pressure wounds, an incidence of 11.4%.
02Patients who stayed more than four days in the ICU and used a nasoenteric catheter, vesical drainage catheter, or tracheostomy had a higher chance of developing pressure wounds in the final model.
03A high Braden Scale risk category was linked with three times the chance of pressure wounds, while a low risk category was linked with lower chance.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study used records from one adult ICU and a convenience sample, so the incidence and factors may not apply to other units or patients. Data came from medical records, not direct patient examination, so wound location and stage were not available. Because this was observational, the linked factors may be markers of sicker or more immobile patients rather than causes of pressure wounds. The reported mean Braden score was higher in patients with pressure wounds than without, although lower Braden scores indicate higher risk.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the higher chance linked to nasoenteric feeding tubes, urinary catheters, tracheostomy, or ICU stay as proof these devices cause pressure wounds. This retrospective record study could not control for how sick or immobile patients were, and it did not directly stage wounds.