Background: Pressure ulcers (PU) represent a widespread, painful, and expensive health care problem directly associated with increased morbidity, mortality, and length of hospital stay. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of PU in hospitalised patients in public and private Brazilian institutions and the ulcers' associations with nutritional status and other risk factors.
Methods: A multicenter, cross-sectional, quantitative and qualitative study was carried out in hospitals in different geographic regions of Brazil from March 2009 to February 2011. The prevalence and characteristics of PU, the nutritional status and the association between the presence of PU, and the nutritional status and other study variables were evaluated. The association of the presence of PU with the study variables was performed by univariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression models. The final multivariate model was one in which all variables were significant at the 0.05 level.
Results: According to the subjective global assessment (SGA), the prevalence of PU was 16.9%, and 52.4% of patients were malnourished. PU and their severity were directly associated with malnutrition (P < 0.05). Patients who are bedridden, who are elderly, who have neurological disorders or cancer, who are staying at a public or private institution, and who are staying at the hospital between 8 d and 15 d had an increased risk of PU (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: The prevalence of PU in Brazilian general hospitals is high, and the prevalence of malnutrition is extremely high. Malnourishment is one of the most important risk factors associated with the development and severity of PU in hospitals. Patients who are malnourished are more prone to developing PU.
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