Craig T, Mathieu S, Morden C, Patel M, Matthews L. A prospective multicentre observational study to quantify nocturnal light exposure in intensive care.
J Intensive Care Soc 2023;
24:133-138. [PMID:
37260432 PMCID:
PMC10227891 DOI:
10.1177/17511437211045325]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Background
Disrupted circadian rhythms can have a major effect on human physiology and healthcare outcomes, with proven increases in ICU morbidity, mortality and length of stay.
Methods
We performed a multicentre observational study to study the nocturnal lux exposure of patients in 3 intensive care units.
Results
The median light intensity recorded was 1 lux over the 6-hour recording period; however, this is deceptive as it hides short periods of high lux. When looked at in shorter time segments of 30 minutes, there were significant periods of lux higher than a crude median, especially in higher acuity patients. There was a positive correlation between acuity (as estimated by SOFA score) and maximum lux (R = 0.479, p = .0001), median lux (R = 0.35, p = .006) and cumulative lux (R = 0.55, p = .000001). There was no relationship between neighbouring patient acuity and lux.
Conclusions
Clinicians should practice vigilance at night to provide optimal environmental conditions for patients to minimise potential harm.
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