A description of patients' report of endotracheal tube discomfort

The level of discomfort during the use of different circuits of the mechanical ventilator

Objectives

Endotracheal tube (ETT) intubation is a life-saving procedure in patients with respiratory failure. However, the presence of an ETT can cause significant discomfort. A tracheostomy tube is used to administer a mechanical ventilator, resulting in a more stable airway and fewer serious injuries. Noninvasive ventilators (NIPPVs) administer ventilation through masks and must be tightly fixed to the face. ETT, tracheostomy, and NIPPV are the most common methods of ventilator maintenance. However, these interventions often cause discomfort to patients. This study aimed to compare discomfort associated with ETT, tracheostomy, and NIPPV.

Materials and Methods

Forty-nine conscious patients with postextubation NIPPV and eight conscious patients who underwent postextubation tracheotomy were evaluated for discomfort. A questionnaire survey on discomfort was performed before and after NIPPV or tracheostomy. These patients reported their level of discomfort on a visual analog scale.

Results

The levels of sore throat, nasal pain, body pain, activity limitation, respiratory discomfort, oral discomfort, difficulty coughing sputum, worry about respiratory tube disconnection, back pain, anxiety, worry about long-term admission, sleep disturbance, and general discomfort during ETT intubation were higher than during tracheostomy or NIPPV (all P < 0.05). The mean level of discomfort was approximately 5-6 points (moderate) in patients with ETT and 2-3 points (mild) in patients with NIPPV or tracheostomy.

Conclusion

The level of discomfort was higher in patients who underwent ETT intubation than in those who underwent NIPPV or tracheostomy. However, the level of discomfort was similar between the patients with NIPPV and those who underwent tracheostomy.

Patient's experiences of endotracheal tubes and suction following cardiac surgery

BACKGROUND

There is a growing body of evidence addressing the patient experience of intensive care, including patient reports that the presence of an endotracheal tube is bothersome and distressing, and that endotracheal suction is moderately to extremely painful. Yet there remains little information about the patient experience of the endotracheal tube and suction in those patients receiving planned short-term mechanical ventilation.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to describe the patient experience of the endotracheal tube and suction, following mechanical ventilation in post-operative cardiac surgical patients.

DESIGN

This qualitative study used inductive thematic analysis. Participants having planned cardiac surgery, anticipated to receive less than 12-hours mechanical ventilation, were approached pre-operatively and written consent provided.

METHODS

Ten participants were recruited using purposive sampling. Semi-structured interviews were conducted between days four and six post-operatively. One researcher interviewed all participants; two researchers independently read, coded, and agreed themes.

FINDINGS

None of the participants recalled endotracheal suction, while half had no recollection of the endotracheal tube. Three themes were identified; the experience of the endotracheal tube and extubation, the experience of emerging from sedation, and participants concerns about the future. The presence of the endotracheal tube was described as bothersome, whilst breathing through the tube and extubation were described as 'weird' and 'strange' but not painful.

CONCLUSIONS

Knowledge of the patient experience can help inform nursing practice by improving pre and post-operative care planning.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

This study adds to the body of knowledge about the patient experience of the endotracheal tube and extubation.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Prospective registration with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry. www.anzctr.org.au (ACTRN12616001515482).

Family automated voice reorientation (FAVoR) intervention for mechanically ventilated patients in the intensive care unit: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Delirium in the intensive care unit (ICU) affects up to 80% of critically ill, mechanically ventilated (MV) adults. Delirium is associated with substantial negative outcomes, including increased hospital complications and long-term effects on cognition and health status in ICU survivors. The purpose of this randomized controlled trial is to test the effectiveness of a Family Automated Voice Reorientation (FAVoR) intervention on delirium among critically ill MV patients. The FAVoR intervention uses scripted audio messages, which are recorded by the patient's family and played at hourly intervals during daytime hours. This ongoing orientation to the ICU environment through recorded messages in a voice familiar to the patient may enable the patient to more accurately interpret the environment and thus reduce risk of delirium. The study's primary aim is to test the effect of the FAVoR intervention on delirium in critically ill MV adults in the ICU. The secondary aims are to explore: (1) if the effect of FAVoR on delirium is mediated by sleep, (2) if selected biobehavioral factors moderate the effects of FAVoR on delirium, and (3) the effects of FAVoR on short-term and long-term outcomes, including cognition and health status. Subjects (n = 178) are randomly assigned to the intervention or control group within 48 h of initial ICU admission and intubation. The intervention group receives FAVoR over a 5-day period, while the control group receives usual care. Delirium-free days, sleep and activity, cognition, patient-reported health status and sleep quality, and data regarding iatrogenic/environmental and biobehavioral factors are collected.

Delirium prevention in critically ill adults through an automated reorientation intervention - A pilot randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVES

Explore the effect of an automated reorientation intervention on ICU delirium in a prospective randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND

Delirium is common in ICU patients, and negatively affects outcomes. Few prevention strategies have been tested.

METHODS

Thirty ICU patients were randomized to 3 groups. Ten received hourly recorded messages in a family member's voice during waking hours over 3 ICU days, 10 received the same messages in a non-family voice, and 10 (control) did not receive any automated reorientation messages. The primary outcome was delirium free days during the intervention period (evaluated by CAM-ICU). Groups were compared by Fisher's Exact Test.

RESULTS

The family voice group had more delirium free days than the non-family voice group, and significantly more delirium free days (p = 0.0437) than the control group.

CONCLUSIONS

Reorientation through automated, scripted messages reduced incidence of delirium. Using identical scripted messages, family voice was more effective than non-family voice.

[Tolerance of endotracheal tubes in patients on mechanical ventilation]

BACKGROUND

Modern concepts for sedation and analgesia and guidelines recommend light analgesia and sedation, so that patients on mechanically ventilation are more awake, compared to previous concepts. Hence, these patients are more alert and able to experience their situation on the ventilator and their endotracheal tube (ETT).

PROBLEM

There is currently no convincing evidence of how patients tolerate the tube under present conditions, which interventions could help them, or whether they want to be sedated deeper because of the tube. Based upon our own observations, a broad range of reactions are possible.

PURPOSE

The tolerance of the ETT in intensive care patients was explored.

METHOD

A systematic literature research without time constraints in the databases PubMed and CINAHL was performed. Included were quantitative and qualitative studies written in German or English that investigated tolerance of the ETT in adult intensive care patients. Excluded were anesthetic studies including in- and extubation immediately before and after operations.

RESULTS

Of the 2348 hits, 14 studies were included, including 4 qualitative studies about the experience of intensive care, 8 quantitative studies including 2 randomized controlled studies, and 2 studies with a mixed approach. Within the studies different aspects could be identified, which may in- or decrease the tolerance of an ETT. Aspects like breathlessness, pain during endotracheal suctioning and inability to speak decrease the tolerance. Information, the presence of relatives and early mobilization appear to increase the tolerance.

CONCLUSION

Tolerance of the ETT is a complex phenomenon. A reflected and critical evaluation of the behavior of the patient with an ETT is recommended. Interventions that increase the tolerance of the ETT should be adapted to the situation of the patient and should be evaluated daily.

Discovery of unexpected pain in intubated and sedated patients

BACKGROUND

The perceptions of patients who are restrained and sedated while being treated with mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit are not well understood. The effectiveness of sedation used to aid in recovery and enhance comfort during intubation is unknown.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the perceptions of patients who were intubated and receiving pain medication while sedated and restrained in the intensive care unit, in particular, their experience and their memories of the experience.

METHODS

In a phenomenological study, 14 patients who were intubated and receiving pain medication while sedated and restrained were interviewed at the bedside. A semistructured interview guide was used. Data were analyzed by using an inductive method consistent with qualitative research.

RESULTS

Three major themes were identified from the data: lack of memory of being restrained; a perception of being intubated as horrific; nursing behaviors that were helpful and comforting. An unexpected discovery was that sedation may be interfering with pain assessment and management.

CONCLUSION

Being intubated can be painful and traumatic despite administration of sedatives and analgesics. Sedation may mask uncontrolled pain for intubated patients and prevent them from communicating this condition to a nurse. Nurses may need to evaluate current interventions in order to provide maximum comfort and promote optimal positive outcomes for intensive care patients who are intubated.

Responses to noxious stimuli in sedated mechanically ventilated adults

OBJECTIVE

To determine the effect of sedation on physiologic responses and comfort before, during and after a noxious stimulus (endotracheal tube suctioning).

METHODS

The sample was a subset of a larger, longitudinal descriptive study, blood for endorphins and saliva for alpha-amylase were obtained before and after suctioning. Heart rate (HR), respiration rate (RR), oxygen saturation (SPO2), and arm and leg actigraphy were continuously recorded.

RESULTS

67 subjects from medical and surgical ICUs were primarily deeply (37%) or mildly sedated (54%) prior to suctioning. Alpha-amylase increased post suctioning (p = 0.04); endorphins did not change (p = 0.58). Neither were modified by sedation. There were no changes in HR, RR or SPO2 post suctioning. Arm (p = 0.007) and leg actigraphy (p = 0.057) changed from baseline and depended on sedation level (p = 0.0005).

CONCLUSIONS

While a stress marker did increase during suctioning, only the measure of patient arm movement was significantly affected by sedation level.

Pupillary reflex measurement predicts insufficient analgesia before endotracheal suctioning in critically ill patients

Introduction

This study aimed to evaluate the pupillary dilatation reflex (PDR) during a tetanic stimulation to predict insufficient analgesia before nociceptive stimulation in the intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods

In this prospective non-interventional study in a surgical ICU of a university hospital, PDR was assessed during tetanic stimulation (of 10, 20 or 40 mA) immediately before 40 endotracheal suctionings in 34 deeply sedated patients. An insufficient analgesia during endotracheal suction was defined by an increase of ≥1 point on the Behavioral Pain Scale (BPS).

Results

A total of 27 (68%) patients had insufficient analgesia. PDR with 10 mA, 20 mA and 40 mA stimulation was higher in patients with insufficient analgesia (P <0.01). The threshold values of the pupil diameter variation during a 10, 20 and 40 mA tetanic stimulation to predict insufficient analgesia during an endotracheal suctioning were 1, 5 and 13% respectively. The areas (95% confidence interval) under the receiver operating curve were 0.70 (0.54 to 0.85), 0.78 (0.61 to 0.91) and 0.85 (0.721 to 0.954) with 10, 20 and 40 mA tetanic stimulations respectively. A sensitivity analysis using the Richmond Agitation Sedation Scale (RASS) confirmed the results. The 40 mA stimulation was poorly tolerated.

Conclusions

In deeply sedated mechanically ventilated patients, a pupil diameter variation ≥5% during a 20 mA tetanic stimulation was highly predictable of insufficient analgesia during endotracheal suction. A 40 mA tetanic stimulation is painful and should not be used.

People's experiences of being mechanically ventilated in an ICU: a qualitative study

OBJECTIVES

In previous studies people receiving mechanical ventilation treatment have described experiencing distress over their inability to speak and feelings such as anxiety. More research is needed to improve their experience in the intensive care unit and promote recovery. The aim of this study was to describe the intensive care unit experiences of people undergoing mechanical ventilation.

METHOD

Qualitative, personal interviews were conducted during 2011 with eight people who were mechanically ventilated in an intensive care unit in the northern part of Sweden. Interview transcripts were analysed using qualitative content analysis.

FINDINGS

Two themes emerged, with four and three categories, respectively. Being dependent for survival on other people and technical medical equipment created a sense of being vulnerable in an anxious situation and a feeling of uncertainty about one's own capacity to breathe. Having lines and tubes in one's body was stressful. Being given a diary and follow-up visit to the intensive care unit after the stay were important tools for filling in the missing time, but there was also one participant who did not want to remember his stay in the intensive care unit.

CONCLUSION

To be dependent on other people and technical medical equipment for survival creates a sense of being delivered into the hands of others, as the people being mechanically ventilated could not trust their body to function.

Sedation in adults receiving mechanical ventilation: physiological and comfort outcomes

OBJECTIVE

To describe the relationships among sedation, stability in physiological status, and comfort during a 24-hour period in patients receiving mechanical ventilation.

METHODS

Data from 169 patients monitored continuously for 24 hours were recorded at least every 12 seconds, including sedation levels, physiological status (heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation by pulse oximetry), and comfort (movement of arms and legs as measured by actigraphy). Generalized linear mixed-effect models were used to estimate the distribution of time spent at various heart and respiratory rates and oxygen saturation and actigraphy intervals overall and as a function of level of sedation and to compare the percentage of time in these intervals between the sedation states.

RESULTS

Patients were from various intensive care units: medical respiratory (52%), surgical trauma (35%), and cardiac surgery (13%). They spent 42% of the time in deep sedation, 38% in mild/moderate sedation, and 20% awake/alert. Distributions of physiological measures did not differ during levels of sedation (deep, mild/moderate, or awake/alert: heart rate, P = .44; respirations, P = .32; oxygen saturation, P = .51). Actigraphy findings differed with level of sedation (arm, P < .001; leg, P = .01), with less movement associated with greater levels of sedation, even though patients spent the vast majority of time with no arm movement or leg movement.

CONCLUSIONS

Level of sedation most likely does not affect the stability of physiological status but does have an effect on comfort.

Patients' narrative accounts of open-heart surgery and recovery: authorial voice of technology

In this narrative inquiry, we examined patients' experiential accounts of technology in open-heart surgery and recovery. A convenience sample of sixteen individuals was recruited from a preoperative clinic at a regional centre for cardiac services in Canada. Each participated in two interviews following transfer from cardiovascular intensive care and 4-6 weeks post discharge from the hospital. Participants also documented their experiences in journals during the first 3-4 weeks following discharge. The focal point of the study's theoretical foundations was narrative emplotment, which directs attention to the active processes of plot construction and shaping forces of stories. In our narrative analysis, we used narrative mapping to document the temporal flow of events. We found that technology acted as the authorial voice, or controlling influence, over how participants' narratives were shaped and unfolded. Key were the ways in which technology as the authorial voice was linked with participants becoming background characters and surrendering agency. Problematic and important to health care professionals is ensuring that authorial voice shifts back to patients so that they become active in shaping their own course of recovery. This study underscores the benefits of using literary techniques such as narrative analysis in health science research. Examining the narrative structures and forces that shape patients' stories sheds light on how health care professionals and their technologically-driven practices of care strongly affect the stories' content and how they unfold. By focusing on how stories unfolded, we revealed ways in which cardiac surgery practices and patients' course of recovery could be enhanced.

[Unplanned extubations in patients in the ventilator weaning phase in the intensive care unit: Incidence and risk factors]

OBJECTIVES

To identify the incidence of unplanned extubations (UE) in a general intensive care unit (ICU) and associated risk factors.

METHODS

An analytical, observational and prospective study was performed in an eight-bed general ICU over a 6-month period. The participants consisted of 79 consecutive patients who underwent mechanical ventilation for 12 h or more and who were under the ventilator weaning phase. The variables studied were age, days of endotracheal intubation, length of stay in the ICU, weaning phase and the APACHE II prognostic score; the degree of sedation and/or agitation was evaluated using Riker's Sedation-Agitation Scale. The incidence density of UEs was calculated and the variables measured in the extubated and non-extubated groups were compared using the Mann Whitney U-test.

RESULTS

Among the 79 patients studied, UE occurred in 15 (18.9%). Of these events, 76.9% occurred during the ventilator weaning phase. There were 11 cases (73.3%) of self-extubations, three cases (20%) of accidental removal and one case (6.6%) of endotracheal tube obstruction. Age equal to or less than 60 years was a risk factor. No relationship was found with the remaining factors studied: days of hospital stay, days of endotracheal intubation or APACHE score.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients at risk for UE were younger and showed agitation on the Riker scale. UEs usually occurred during the ventilator weaning phase.

Evaluations of physiologic reactivity and reflexive behaviors during noxious procedures in sedated critically ill patients

PURPOSE

Sedated patients' responses to noxious stimulation are not well characterized. A standardized measure of nociception for use in the intensive care unit (ICU) is elusive. The study aimed to describe cardiovascular and pupil reactivity and behavioral responses between noxious and nonnoxious procedures in sedated ICU patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This prospective, descriptive study performed repeated measures using within-subject and crossover techniques. Forty-eight sedated, ventilated cardiac surgery patients from 2 institutions were included. Pupil sizes, heart rate, blood pressure, cortical arousal changes per the bispectral index, and behaviors were recorded at baseline, during, and after a noxious procedure (endotracheal suctioning or turning), and gentle touch.

RESULTS

The majority of patients was deeply sedated with propofol infusion and were unresponsive or responsive only to physical stimulation. Significant changes in heart rate, pupil size, and bispectral index occurred with the noxious procedure but not with the nonnoxious procedure (P < .01). Reflexive behaviors were not evident during both procedures.

CONCLUSIONS

Certain physiologic reactions and pupil size changes may be potentially useful nociceptive indicators in ICU settings. Further research is needed to determine the clinical parameters of physiologic response change and to evaluate the effects of opioids and sedatives on these physiologic responses.

Basic needs and their predictors for intubated patients in surgical intensive care units

OBJECTIVE

This study was conducted to investigate the basic needs and communication difficulties of intubated patients in surgical intensive care units (ICUs) and to identify predictors of the basic needs from the patient characteristics and communication difficulties.

METHODS

In this descriptive correlational study, 80 surgical ICU patients were recruited and interviewed using 3 structured questionnaires: demographic information, scale of basic needs, and scale of communication difficulties.

RESULTS

The intubated patients were found to have moderate communication difficulties. The sense of being loved and belonging was the most common need in the intubated patients studied (56.00 standardized scores). A significantly positive correlation was found between communication difficulties and general level of basic needs (r = .53, P < .01), and another positive correlation was found between the length of stay in ICUs and the need for love and belonging (r = .25, P < .05). The basic needs of intubated patients could be significantly predicted by communication difficulties (P = .002), use of physical restraints (P = .010), lack of intubation history (P = .005), and lower educational level (P = .005). These 4 predictors accounted for 47% of the total variance in basic needs.

CONCLUSION

The intubated patients in surgical ICUs had moderate basic needs and communication difficulties. The fact that the basic needs could be predicted by communication difficulties, physical restraints, and educational level suggests that nurses in surgical ICUs need to improve skills of communication and limit the use of physical restraints, especially in patients with a lower educational level.

Management of pain in cardiac surgery ICU patients: Have we improved over time?

This study described the pain experience of cardiac surgery ICU patients. After their transfer to the surgical unit, 93 patients were interviewed using a questionnaire about their pain experience while they were in the ICU. Sixty-one patients (65.6%) recalled being ventilated and 72 patients (77.4%) recalled having pain. Turning was the most frequent source of pain experienced by the patients. A large proportion of the patients (47.3%) identified the thorax as the location of their pain. All patients had a sternal incision. Pain was mild for 16 patients, moderate for 21, and severe for 25 of them. While ventilated, head nodding and movements of the upper limbs were the most frequent means of communication used by the patients. Despite advances in pain management, the study's findings are disturbingly similar to those of 17 years ago [Puntillo KA. Pain experiences of intensive care unit patients. Heart Lung 1990;19:526-33]. Evidence from research about clinical guidelines for pain management needs to be applied to the care of cardiac surgery patients in order to reduce patient suffering.

Reporting unplanned extubation

Between 1995 and 2002 seven clinical audits were undertaken in consecutive periods over twelve months to determine the frequency and risk factors associated with reported unplanned extubation (UE) within a 22-bed general and surgical Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Nursing and medical staff provided information on the patient's age, diagnosis, mental status, precipitating causes and investigations/treatment ordered. Following the first audit, modifications were made to include anonymous reporting. Additional information was also obtained on the patient's position, sedation regimen, method of endotracheal tube (ETT) placement and the use of physical restraints. A clinical indicator was established to monitor the UE incidence based as a rate of UE per 100 patients. Audit results were between 1.06% and 4.86% with an aggregate rate from 1995 to 2002 of 2.6%. This rate compares favourably with the range of 2.8-22.5% reported in the literature. Over the survey periods, 28-60% of patients were assessed as being confused or agitated, 47-67% restrained and 53-70% sedated. The UE reported rate initially increased when anonymous reporting was introduced from 1.06% to 4.86%. Unplanned extubation incidence subsequently decreased in Surgical ICU following the introduction of clinical pathways, early weaning and nurse led extubation. Monitoring UE in ICU provides important information on the quality of care. We would recommend a system of anonymous reporting to more freely reflect incidence.