Complications of pressure ulcers in severely ill patients: a descriptive-exploratory study

ABSTRACT

Aim: to identify the complications of pressure ulcers in severely ill patients from the perspective of the nurses. Method: This is a descriptive-exploratory study which adopts a qualitative approach involving a questionnaire to nurses working in an intensive care unit of Onofre Lopes Hospital, in Natal, Brazil. The data were submitted to the content analysis topics Results: From the comments of the professionals, we generated a category “Complications of pressure ulcers in severely ill patients”, and the subcategories “infection”, “period of hospitalization”, “hospital costs”, “mortality” and “suffering”. Discussion: Ulcers lead to infections and to an increase in microbiological resistance. They increase the period of hospitalization and the costs of treatment due to the resulting complications. Mortality is related to the worsening of clinical conditions. Suffering is a result of pain and dependency. Conclusion: For the nurses, pressure ulcers are complications that generate a worsening of clinical conditions of severely ill patients, which makes it necessary to adapt the treatment.