Characteristics of Obese and Non-obese Nursing Home Residents Who Develop Pressure Injuries

Abstract\n\nIntroduction: Pressure Injuries (PrI) are common, often preventable injuries occurring primarily on bony prominences of nursing home (NH) residents with challenges in mobility, activity, nutrition, moisture, sensory perception, and friction and shear. This study examines residents’ characteristics of those who developed a PrI post admission to 9 NHs (NH acquired PrI).\n\nMethods: Data for this retrospective descriptive exploratory study were drawn from an existing R01 study (NIH R01NR016001\; ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02996331) (Turn Everyone and Move for Ulcer Prevention (TEAM-UP)). Characteristics of residents (n=104) who developed a new PrI were evaluated. Electronic health record (EHR) data examined include gender, age, race, ethnicity, height, weight, and Braden Total Score. Basic descriptive statistics were calculated for all characteristics.\n\nResults: PrI incidence of residents during the TEAM-UP project’s 12-month Baseline was (7.3% overall\; 104/1425) with 23% obese and 77% non-obese (Underweight, Normal Weight, Overweight). Residents with a PrI were predominantly female (70.2%), had a mean age of 78.3\nyears (SD=12.7), and 54.8%% were white, 41.3% Black, and 2.9% unknown race. Residents with PrIs were most often of Normal Weight n=45 (43.3%) with other residents being Underweight n=19 (18.3%), Overweight n=16 (15.4%), and Obese n=24 (23%). BMI categories and Braden Total risk score will be presented in relation to overall resident characteristics.\n\nDiscussion/Conclusions: PrI incidence varies according to BMI, race, ethnicity, and gender. Ability to evaluate the contribution of obesity to PrI incidence is limited because residents in this study were largely of normal weight. Overweight or obese combined comprised a substantial portion of those who developed a PrI. Further study with a larger population is merited to explore resident characteristics as potential causative factors for PrI development