Effects of a Mobilization Program Applied to Bariatric Surgery Patients on Preventing Gastrointestinal Complications: a Quasi-Experimental Study.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of a planned early targeted mobilization program applied to patients that underwent bariatric surgery with the laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy method on gastrointestinal complications (nausea-vomiting, abdominal distention, delayed flatus-defecation, and intolerance of early oral intake). MATERIALS AND METHODS: This prospective, controlled group, quasi-experimental design study was conducted between July 2019 and March 2020 in the general surgery clinic of a training and research hospital with 70 patients who underwent sleeve gastrectomy and met the inclusion criteria. The prepared mobilization program was applied to the patients on the 0th, 1st, and 2nd postoperative days, and the gastrointestinal functions of the patients were monitored. RESULTS: The intervention group had a significantly shorter time to first flatus, defecation, and oral intake; higher frequency of defecation; lower pain, abdominal distention, and nausea; better tolerance of oral intake; and higher total oral intake compared to the control group (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Planned, early, and targeted mobilization was determined to be a feasible, safe, and cost-effective nursing intervention to prevent gastrointestinal complications in patients undergoing sleeve gastrectomy.

Comparison of postoperative pain, anxiety, and sleep quality in robotic-assisted and manual total knee replacement surgery.

This study aimed to comparatively evaluate postoperative pain, anxiety, and sleep quality in patients after robotic-assisted and manual total knee replacement surgery. Patients who underwent either robotic or manual total knee replacement (TKR) surgery were analyzed in this cross-sectional observational study. Volunteers who were conscious, mentally healthy, without primary sleep disorders, without chronic uncontrolled diseases, 18 years of age or older, able to understand verbal warnings, and who agreed to participate in the study after being informed about the purpose of the study were included in the study. A total of 80 patients who underwent robotic-assisted TKR and 87 patients who underwent manual TKR were participated in the study. Data were collected using the "Patient Description Form" Visual Analog Scale, Richards-Campbell Sleep Scale, and State Anxiety Scale. All patients were operated on by the same physicians and received standard perioperative care. In the study, a statistically significant difference was found between the education level of the patients and the type of surgery (p = 0.007). According to the average scores, it was observed that the patients in the robotic group had higher pain levels, better sleep quality, and higher anxiety levels compared to the manual group. There was a significant correlation between the level of pain felt on the 1st and 2nd day (p = < 0.001) and state anxiety levels with gender (p = 0.010) in the robotic group. For the robotic group, pain on day 2 was mostly affected by pain on day 1 and state anxiety. For the manual group, pain on day 2 was mostly affected by pain on day 1. According to our results, patients who underwent robotic-assisted TKR had higher pain levels, better sleep quality, and higher anxiety levels than patients who underwent manual TKR.

Pressure injuries in surgical patients: a comparison of Norton, Braden and Waterlow risk assessment scales.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine the predictive power of the Norton, Braden and Waterlow scales in determining risk of pressure injury (PI) in surgical patients. METHOD: This prospective study was carried out in the surgery clinic of a training and research hospital in Istanbul, Turkey between January and April 2017. The study sample consisted of adult patients aged ≥18 years and who did not have PI on admission to the clinic, had abdominal surgery under general anaesthesia and who stayed in the clinic for at least 48 hours. The data were collected using the Turkish versions of the Norton, Braden and Waterlow risk assessment scales. The predictive validity of PI risk assessment tools was assessed based on their sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Predictive capacity was measured as relative risk (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: The study sample included 250 patients, and the incidence of PI was 12%. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were: 83.3%, 45.4%, 17.2% and 95.2%, respectively, for the Norton scale (a cut-off point of 14); 100%, 40.4%, 18.6% and 100%, respectively, for the Braden scale (a cut-off point of 16); and 100%, 48.1%, 20.8% and 100%, respectively, for the Waterlow scale (a cut-off point of 10). The areas under the ROC curve were 0.749 for the Norton, 0.771 for the Braden and 0.971 for the Waterlow scales. This study's findings produced the following predictive capacity indicators: Norton (RR=3.62; 95%CI=1.43-9.14), Braden (RR=33.88; 95%CI=2.09-547.66); and Waterlow (RR=45.01; 95%CI=2.78-727.97). CONCLUSION: In this study, the Waterlow scale demonstrated the best values of predictive validity among the three scales in the assessment of PI risk. However, all three scales had low specificity despite high sensitivity in terms of a good risk prediction. No definitive decision could be reached on the predictive capacities of the scales because of wide CIs.

Precautions Taken by Nurses about the Prevention of Hospital-Acquired Infections in Intensive Care Units.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the precautions that nurses take for avoiding hospital-acquired infections in intensive care units of a State University Medical Faculty Hospital in Istanbul. METHODS: The research data were collected by a questionnaire developed by the authors. The study was conducted in intensive care units of a medical faculty hospital of a state university in Istanbul province. 85 nurses working in different various intensive care units and providing informed consent participated in the study. RESULTS: Intravenous catheterization, urinary catheterization, ventilator-associated infections and surgical site infections were assessed. The questionnaire was scored by applying a conversion of 100 to the total scores obtained, with the highest score being 100 and lowest score being 0. The percentage of nurses that practised all of the approaches about preventing hospital-acquired infections was estimated to be 8.2% for catheter-related bloodstream infections, 67.1% for surgical site infections, 72.9% for catheter-associated urinary tract infections, 27.1% for ventilator-associated infections, 29.4% for isolation preventions and 62.5% for attempts related to sterilization/disinfection of the medical devices. CONCLUSION: It was seen that nurses use most of the effective measures in order to prevent hospital-acquired infections. The guidelines generated for intensive care units should be updated according to international standards as needed. These guidelines should be used effectively; the differences between intensive care units should be resolved and all nurses should be trained at certain intervals.