Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correction to: Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake

Prevalence, associated factors and outcomes of pressure injuries in adult intensive care unit patients: the DecubICUs study

Funder: European Society of Intensive Care Medicine; doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100013347Funder: Flemish Society for Critical Care NursesAbstract: Purpose: Intensive care unit (ICU) patients are particularly susceptible to developing pressure injuries. Epidemiologic data is however unavailable. We aimed to provide an international picture of the extent of pressure injuries and factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries in adult ICU patients. Methods: International 1-day point-prevalence study; follow-up for outcome assessment until hospital discharge (maximum 12 weeks). Factors associated with ICU-acquired pressure injury and hospital mortality were assessed by generalised linear mixed-effects regression analysis. Results: Data from 13,254 patients in 1117 ICUs (90 countries) revealed 6747 pressure injuries; 3997 (59.2%) were ICU-acquired. Overall prevalence was 26.6% (95% confidence interval [CI] 25.9–27.3). ICU-acquired prevalence was 16.2% (95% CI 15.6–16.8). Sacrum (37%) and heels (19.5%) were most affected. Factors independently associated with ICU-acquired pressure injuries were older age, male sex, being underweight, emergency surgery, higher Simplified Acute Physiology Score II, Braden score 3 days, comorbidities (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, immunodeficiency), organ support (renal replacement, mechanical ventilation on ICU admission), and being in a low or lower-middle income-economy. Gradually increasing associations with mortality were identified for increasing severity of pressure injury: stage I (odds ratio [OR] 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), stage II (OR 1.6; 95% CI 1.4–1.9), and stage III or worse (OR 2.8; 95% CI 2.3–3.3). Conclusion: Pressure injuries are common in adult ICU patients. ICU-acquired pressure injuries are associated with mainly intrinsic factors and mortality. Optimal care standards, increased awareness, appropriate resource allocation, and further research into optimal prevention are pivotal to tackle this important patient safety threat

Correlation of crystal structures, electronic structures, and photocatalytic properties in a series of Ag-based oxides: AgAlO2, AgCrO2, and Ag2CrO4

Three Ag-based oxides, AgAlO2, AgCrO2, and Ag2CrO4, were prepared by the cation exchange method. Powder X-ray diffraction analysis showed that AgAlO2 and Ag2CrO4 crystallized in orthorhombic structures and AgCrO2 crystallized in a hexagonal structure. The band gaps of AgAlO2, AgCrO2, and Ag2CrO4 were estimated to be 2.95, 1.68, and 1.75 eV, respectively. The photooxidation of Methyl Orange and gaseous benzene were performed to test the activities of the three materials. In the two kinds of reactions, the activity orders were both Ag2CrO4 > AgAlO2 > AgCrO2, and it was found that the novel photocatalyst, Ag2CrO4, showed activity in the visible region up to 570 nm. The correlation among crystal structures, electronic structures, and photocatalytic properties in the three Ag-based oxides is discussed in detail

A new global dataset of phase synchronization of temperature and precipitation: Its climatology and contribution to global vegetation productivity

Abstract Besides cumulative temperature and precipitation, the phase synchronization of temperature and precipitation also helps to regulate vegetation distribution and productivity across global lands. However, the phase synchronization has been rarely considered in previous studies related to climate and biogeography due to a lack of a robust and quantitative approach. In this study, we proposed a synchronization index of temperature and precipitation (SI‐TaP) and then investigated its global spatial distribution, interannual fluctuation, and long‐term trend derived from a global 60‐year dataset of meteorological forcings. Further investigation was conducted to understand the relationship between SI‐TaP and the annually summed Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), which could be a proxy of terrestrial vegetation productivity. Results show differences in both spatial patterns and temporal variations between SI‐TaP and air temperature and precipitation, but SI‐TaP may help to explain the distribution and productivity of terrestrial vegetation. About 60% of regions where annually summed NDVI is greater than half of its maximum value overlap regions where SI‐TaP is greater than half of its maximum value. By using SI‐TaP to explain vegetation productivity along with temperature and precipitation, the maximum increase in the coefficient of determination is 0.66 across global lands. Results from this study suggest that the proposed SI‐TaP index is helpful to better understand climate change and its relation to the biota

Nonlinear spillover effect of US monetary policy uncertainty on China’s systematic financial risks

Monetary policy uncertainty (MPU) not only imposes a great impact on the systematic financial risks of a country but also generates a significant spillover effect on countries having close economic exchanges with the former under the background of global economic integration. With the daily return rates of 64 listed financial companies in China from February 2006 to September 2020 used as the samples, China’s systematic financial risks were measured in this research by using long-run marginal expected shortfall (LRMES). On this basis, an FAVAR model with time-varying parameters was constructed to empirically investigate the spillover effect of US MPU on China’s systematic financial risks and its main transmission channels. Results showed that within the sample period (February 2006 – September 2020), US MPU generated a significant positive spillover effect on China’s systematic financial risks, namely, China’s systematic financial risks would be aggravated if the level of US MPU was elevated. From different time intervals, the spillover level was particularly high during global financial crises and global COVID-19 pandemic, indicating that the spillover effect of MPU is nonlinear and closely related to global major sudden risk events. Through the further research, it is found that this effect is mainly transmitted through short-term capital flow, interest rate, and economic uncertainty-induced channels, among which the short-term capital flow is the most important

Relationship between Evapotranspiration and Land Surface Temperature under Energy- and Water-Limited Conditions in Dry and Cold Climates

Remotely sensed land surface temperature- (LST-) dependent evapotranspiration (ET) models and vegetation index- (VI-) LST methods may not be suitable for ET estimation in energy-limited cold areas. In this study, the relationship of ET to LST was simulated using the process-based Simultaneous Heat and Water (SHAW) model for energy- and water-limited conditions in Mongolia, to understand the differences in ET processes under these two limiting conditions in dry and cold climates. Simulation results from the SHAW model along with ground observational data showed that ET and LST have a positive relationship when air temperature (Ta) is less than or equal to the temperature (Ttra) above which plants transpire and have a negative relationship when Ta is greater than Ttra under the energy-limited condition. However, ET and LST maintain a negative relationship with changes in Ta under the water-limited condition. The differences in the relationship between ET and LST under the energy-limited and water-limited conditions could be attributed to plant transpiration and energy storage in moist/watered soil and plants. This study suggests that different strategies should be used to estimate ET under the energy-limited condition in dry and cold climates