Risk of the development of pressure ulcers in the perioperative period in patients treated with hip joint alloplasty

Introduction
To evaluate the impact of selected factors on the risk of the development of pressure ulcers and their incidence in the perioperative period in patients treated with hip joint alloplasty.

Material and methods
A total of 105 patients aged 42-90 years were qualified for proper studies according to the selection criteria. The patients underwent hip joint alloplasty. The method employed in the study was observing and estimating with the use of our own research protocol designed for the purposes of gathering information about the patients and their health conditions. This data was obtained from the medical records. The following clinical scales were used: ASA, Carpini, Waterlow, Torrance, and NPUAP. The differences between the variables were estimated using the χ2 test of independence, Mann-Whitney test, and Kruskal-Wallis test. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Results
The risk of pressure ulcers development, assessed by Waterlow score, concerned 41% of the entire group. Pressure ulcers occurred in 11.4% of the patients and were assessed according to the Torrance system. The risk of pressure ulcer development in the postoperative period was determined according to the Waterlow scale and concerned all the patients. The postoperative examination confirmed stage I/II pressure ulcers in 32.4% of the patients.

Conclusions
The surgery procedure and the waiting time determine the risk of development of pressure ulcers and their location. Pressure ulcers were more common in patients who had undergone urgent surgery due to injury and in patients operated two days or more following admission than in patients who had planned surgery and waited no longer than a day for the operation.