Survey of nutritional status in newly hospitalized patients with stage III or stage IV pressure ulcers.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the nutritional status of newly hospitalized patients with Stage III or Stage IV pressure ulcers. DESIGN: Descriptive survey. STUDY PARTICIPANTS: 405 newly admitted hospitalized non-ICU patients were eligible for inclusion in the study. Patients included in the study had Stage III or Stage IV pressure ulcers on their trunk, had weight indices available, and had prealbumin levels measured. One hundred and twenty patients were included in the analysis. INTERVENTIONS AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Measurements of weight, prealbumin and albumin levels, nutritional intake, type of diet, gender, age, type of pressure ulcer, and type of residence prior to admission. RESULTS: Analysis of the data revealed that a majority of the patients were elderly, had a Stage III sacral ulcer, were below their usual body weight, had a low prealbumin level, and were not taking in enough nutrition to meet their needs. CONCLUSION: The results of this study suggest that a majority of newly hospitalized patients with severe pressure ulcers are malnourished and aggressive nutritional therapy may be warranted.

Oxygen and wound healing.

Surgeons have been aware of the detrimental effect of ischemia and hypoxia on healing tissues. In order to assist repair in such circumstances, a variety of modalities including revascularization, flaps, and hyperbaric O2 have been developed. Although these are apparently successful from a clinical standpoint, only recently has experimental evidence demonstrated conclusively that oxygen is a controlling factor in wound repair. Furthermore, it is now clear that traditional expectations of repair can often be exceeded by increasing the partial pressure at which oxygen is supplied to wounds.