Implementation of pressure ulcer prevention and management in elderly patients: a retrospective study in tertiary care hospital in Qatar

• Published in: The aging male Vol. 23; no. 5; pp. 1066 - 1072
• Main Authors: Nadukkandiyil, Navas, Syamala, Shirmila, Saleh, Haroon Ahmed, Sathian, Brijesh, Ahmadi Zadeh, Khadijeh, Acharath Valappil, Sameer, Alobaidli, Maryam, Elsayed, Sahar Ahmad, Abdelghany, Amin, Jayaraman, Kameshwaran, Al Hamad, Hanadi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Taylor & Francis 01.12.2020; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Aged; Aging; Anemia; comorbidities; Comorbidity; elderly; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Mens health; Older people; Pressure ulcer; Pressure Ulcer - epidemiology; Pressure Ulcer - prevention & control; Pressure ulcers; prevention intervention; Qatar; Qatar - epidemiology; Retrospective Studies; Tertiary Care Centers; Qatar; comorbidities; prevention intervention; Pressure ulcer; Qatar; elderly
• ISSN: 1368-5538; 1473-0790
• DOI: 10.1080/13685538.2019.1670156

Preventing pressure ulcers is an essential part of patient care and it is important to be aware of the best way to prevent it. Hence, the present study aims to look for the demographics, clinical characteristics, and risk factors in patients with and without pressure ulcer among elderly patients. A retrospective longitudinal study was conducted in elderly (above 65 years) patients from a period of October 2014 to October 2015 in the medical ward under acute Geriatric care at Hamad General Hospital in Qatar. Overall, a total of 90 patients were included with an average age of 79 ± SD 11.3 years of which 45 patients developed pressure ulcer. There was male (64.4%) preponderance in the study population. Most common comorbidity was hypertension (77.8%). Anemia correction (91%), high protein diet supplementation (1.5 g/kg body wt.) (100%), and 2 h repositioning (100%) were implemented for majority of the pressure ulcer patients as preventive intervention. From the study finding, it is observed that, anemia correction, high protein diet supplementation and 2 h repositioning are the best practices for the management of pressure ulcer. Hence, these best practices are recommended for the early prevention of pressure ulcer among elderly.