Analysis of prevalence and risk factors of skin tears in hospitalized patients

Abstract

Objective To investigate the prevalence and risk factors of skin tears among inpatients and to provide the evidence for prevention. Methods In January and April 2015, adult patients(≥18 years) from a tertiary first-ranked general hospital were selected using convenient cluster sampling method to research on skin tears and related factors. The research tool of skin tears was designed by the research group of Nanjing Genearl Hospital and revised 3 rounds based on the Delphi method. Results Among 1 646 adult patients, 23 patients with skin tears were identified, making the prevalence of 1.39%, which was near to 1.58% of the prevalence of pressure ulcer among 12 inpatients. Most of the skin tears were categorized into 1a in STAR Classification System. By univariate analysis, age(≥60 years), traumatic fractures, lying in bed and Braden score≤16 were significantly associated with skin tears development(P<0.05). By logistic regression analysis, age(≥60 years) (OR=4.89, P=0.028) and traumatic fractures (OR=5.84, P=0.017) turned out to be risk factors of skin tears for inpatients. Conclusions The prevalence of skin tears among inpatients is near to the prevalence of pressure ulcer. Patients with older ages(≥60 years) and traumatic fractures have a higher risk of skin tears, who should receive special care for prevention and intervention. Key words: Skin tears; Prevalence; Risk factors; Cross-sectional study