Adverse Events in an Intensive Care UNIT

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this study was to find out about the most frequent Adverse Events (AEs) in patients admitted to a COVID-19 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and to describe their clinical and epidemiological profile. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional study, carried out based on the analysis of medical records of patients admitted to a COVID-19 ICU of a public hospital in the interior of Bahia, in 2020. Results: The sample comprised 203 medical records, the majority of which were elderly (61.1%) and women (50.7%). 92.1% of those investigated had some comorbidity, the most frequent being systemic arterial hypertension - SAH (69.5%), type II diabetes mellitus - DM II (43.8%), obesity (28.1%) and smoking (21.7%). As for the occurrence of AEs, 56.6% of patients had suffered some incident. Of these, the most common were pressure injuries (LPPs) (23.6%), healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) (22.7%) and ventilator-associated pneumonias (VAPs) (13.8%). Among the AEs related to procedures, late tracheostomy (LQT) was the most common (14.3%). With regard to the outcome of the sample, there was a close ratio between deaths and discharges, 48.3% and 44.3% respectively. A large percentage (44.3%) stayed less than 7 days in the ICU and between 7 and 14 days in hospital (34.5%). Final considerations: AEs had a significant occurrence, with higher frequencies of LPPs, IRAS and PAVs. The study should be continued in order to investigate the possible association between the occurrence of AEs and the increased risk of death and longer hospital stay.

Keywords: Adverse Events; Intensive Care Units; COVID-19.