Efficacy of an Improved Absorbent Pad on Incontinence-Associated Dermatitis in Older Women: Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial
By Sugama, Junko; Sanada, Hiromi; Shigeta, Yoshie; Nakagami, Gojiro; Konya, Chizuko; BMC Geriatrics, Volume 12, Number 22Publication Date: May 29, 2012
Study tested the hypothesis that the skin condition of older adult women with incontinence-associated dermatitis (IAD) would improve faster with the use of an improved absorbent pad versus their usual pad employed as control. The improved pad, the dry-feel Attent S Care Pad, was designed to absorb urine in its frontal area to minimize exposure of the buttocks to urine while preventing the absorbed fluid from flowing back to the pad surface. Study participants were 60 female inpatients with a mean age of 84 years who had IAD and used an absorbent pad or diaper all day. Participants were divided into an intervention group wearing the improved pad and a control group wearing their usual pad. Healing rate of IAD and variables of skin barrier function such as skin pH and skin moisture were compared between groups. Thirteen patients, or 43.3 percent of participants, from the intervention group and 4 patients, representing 13.3 percent of participants, from the control group recovered completely from IAD. Moreover, the intervention group healed significantly faster than the control group. On the other hand, there were no significant differences between the two groups in skin barrier function. A limitation to the study noted is that, as it targeted bedridden older women, its findings do not apply to elderly people leading sedentary or ambulatory lifestyles.
Published by: BioMed Central Ltd (Website:http://www.biomedcentral.com)
Link to text: http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-2318-12-22.pdf
