ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Gazzetta Medica Italiana Archivio per le Scienze Mediche 2005 August;164(4):287-99

Copyright © 2005 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: Italian

The Analysis Laboratory in bedsores General remarks and personal observations. Note 1: Haematochemical parameters

Giuliani G. C. ¹, Borsa M. ², Palazzi L. ¹, Venti C. ¹, Cena S. A. ¹

¹ U.O.A. di Medicina Lungodegenza, Casa di CuraPoliambulatorio Villa Iris, Pianezza (TO); ² Laboratorio Analisi, Casa di CuraPoliambulatorio Villa Iris, Pianezza (TO)

Aim. The Analysis Laboratory is key to identifying subjects at risk for bedsores and for assessing their gravity, as it is possible to monitor both determining, or predisposing factors and the consequences of the sores.
Methods. Five hundred patients were assessed at admission. Of these 21% were suffering from sores. Twenty-one parameters relating to the sores were evaluated and 3 evaluations were made: 1) comparison of patients with bedsores and patients without bedsores; 2) comparison of patients with one bedsore against patients with more than one bedsore; 3) later comparison of patients without bedsores who developed sores and patients without bedsores who did not develop sores during hospitalisation.
Results. Statistically significant results were obtained with respect to fully 15 of the 21 parameters analysed. The patients with bedsores presented particularly low values of total proteins, albumin percentage and albuminaemia, haemoglobin and haematocrit, net reduction in lymphocytes accompanied by an increase in white cells, a marked reduction in total cholesterol, triglycerides, with normal values of HDL and glycaemia, lower values of potassium, sideraemia and, particularly, zinc, higher values of azotaemia and creatinine, a higher ESR and insignificant variations in magnesium, copper, sodiaemia and uricaemia. These results were confirmed in other comparisons, although with less significance.
Conclusions. Initially, the most significant findings regarded the metabolic and alimentary department and, thereafter, the haematological, then electrolytes and finally infection. The role of albumin as a veritable marker of this condition which is characterised initially as a malnutrition pathology, was confirmed.