Warm Water Compress as an Alternative for Decreasing the Degree of Phlebitis

Abstract

ABSTRACTIntravenous fluid therapy is an invasive procedure which may increase the risk of patient complications. One of the most common of these is phlebitis, which may cause discomfort and tissue damage. Therefore, a nursing intervention is needed to effectively treat phlebitis. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of applying a warm compression intervention to reduce the degree of phlebitis. A quasi-experimental pre-test and post-test design was used, with a non-equivalent control group. The total sample size was 32 patients with degrees of phlebitis ranging from 1 to 4. The total sample was divided into 2 interventional groups: those patients that were given 0.9% NaCl compresses and those given warm water compresses. The results showed that both compresses were effective in reducing the degree of phlebitis, with similar p values (p = .000). However, there was no difference in the average reduction score between the two groups (p = .18). Therefore, a warm water compress is valuable in the treatment of phlebitis, and could decrease the degree of phlebitis both effectively and inexpensively.