[Post-operative mediastinitis in a heart hospital of Recife: contributions for nursing care]

Negative pressure wound therapy in the treatment of surgical site infection in cardiac surgery

OBJECTIVES

to describe the relationship between epidemiological and clinical characteristics of postoperative cardiac surgery patients undergoing negative pressure wound therapy for the treatment of surgical site infection.

METHODS

an observational, cross-sectional analytical study including a convenience sample consisting of medical records of patients undergoing sternal cardiac surgery with surgical site infection diagnosed in medical records treated by negative pressure wound therapy.

RESULTS

medical records of 117 patients, mainly submitted to myocardial revascularization surgery and with deep incisional surgical site infection (88; 75.2%). Negative pressure wound therapy was used on mean for 16 (±9.5) days/patient; 1.7% had complications associated with therapy and 53.8% had discomfort, especially pain (93.6%). The duration of therapy was related to the severity of SSI (p=0.010) and the number of exchanges performed (p=0.045).

CONCLUSIONS

negative pressure wound therapy has few complications, but with discomfort to patients.

Predictors of Mediastinitis Risk after Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery: Applicability of Score in 1.322 Cases

Background

Mediastinitis is a severe surgical complication of low incidence, but high lethality. Scores used in the preoperative period to stratify the risk of postoperative mediastinitis may contribute to improve the results.

Objective

To test the applicability of the MagedanzSCORE in predicting the risk factors for mediastinitis in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting at a cardiology reference hospital.

Methods

Historical cohort study with adult patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting. The analyzed variables were contemplated in the MagedanzSCORE: reoperation, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), obesity, class IV unstable angina, polytransfusion therapy, mediastinitis and death as outcome variables.

Results

Of the 1.322 patients examined, 56 (4.2%) developed mediastinitis. Of these, 26 (46.4%) were classified as high risk for mediastinitis and 15 (26.8%) at very high risk for mediastinitis. Three of the five variables of the Magendanz Score showed statistically significant differences: reoperation, COPD and obesity. Class IV unstable angina and postoperative polytransfusion were not associated with mediastinitis after coronary artery by-pass grafting. The area under the ROC curve was 0.80 (CI 95% 0.73 - 0.86), indicating the model's satisfactory ability to predict the occurrence of mediastinitis.

Conclusion

The tool was useful in the preoperative assessment demonstrating the risk for mediastinitis in this population of intensive care patients.

The immediate post-operative period following lung transplantation: mapping of nursing interventions

OBJECTIVES:

to investigate the principle nursing interventions/actions, prescribed in the immediate post-operative period for patients who receive lung transplantation, recorded in the medical records, and to map these using the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC) taxonomy.

METHOD:

retrospective documental research using 183 medical records of patients who received lung transplantation (2007/2012). The data of the patients' profile were grouped in accordance with the variables investigated, and submitted to descriptive analysis. The nursing interventions prescribed were analyzed using the method of cross-mapping with the related interventions in the NIC. Medical records which did not contain nursing prescriptions were excluded.

RESULTS:

the majority of the patients were male, with medical diagnoses of pulmonary fibrosis, and underwent lung transplantation from a deceased donor. A total of 26 most frequently-cited interventions/actions were found. The majority (91.6%) were in the complex and basic physiological domains of the NIC. It was not possible to map two actions prescribed by the nurses.

CONCLUSIONS:

it was identified that the main prescriptions contained general care for the postoperative period of major surgery, rather than prescriptions individualized to the patient in the postoperative period following lung transplantation. Care measures related to pain were underestimated in the prescriptions. The mapping with the taxonomy can contribute to the elaboration of the care plan and to the use of computerized systems in this complex mode of therapy.