Characteristics of Patients with Pressure Injuries in a COVID-19 Referral Hospital.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: This retrospective study aimed to describe the characteristics of patients treated at a COVID-19 referral hospital from March 2020 to June 2021 who experienced pressure injuries (PIs) either before or after admission. METHODS: The researchers collected and analyzed data on patients' demographic characteristics, symptoms, comorbidities, location and severity of PI, laboratory values, oxygen therapy, length of stay, and vasopressor use. RESULTS: During the study period, 1,070 patients were hospitalized for COVID-19 with varying degrees of severity, and 12 patients were diagnosed with PI. Eight (66.7%) of the patients with PI were men. The median age was 60 (range, 51-71) years, and half of the patients had obesity. Eleven of the patients with PI (91.4%) had at least one comorbid condition. The sacrum and gluteus were the two most commonly affected sites. Those with stage 3 PI had a substantially greater median d-dimer value (7,900 ng/mL) than patients with stage 2 PI (1,100 ng/mL). The average length of stay was 22 (range, 9.8-40.3) days. CONCLUSIONS: Health professionals should be aware of an increase in d-dimer in patients with COVID-19 and PI. Even though PIs in these patients might not result in mortality, an increase in morbidity can be avoided with the right care.