Effects of traditional and dry bed baths on patients admitted in intensive units: A randomized crossover clinical trial

Background

The bed bath is an important part of nursing care. There are few studies evaluating the effects of traditional and dry bed baths on patients.

Aim

This study was performed with the aim of investigating the effect of traditional and dry bed baths given to intensive care unit patients on the patients' hemodynamic parameters, the duration of the bathing procedure and the cost of consumable items.

Methods

This was a randomized crossover clinical trial and a prospective study. The study was conducted in a General Surgery Intensive Care Unit with 22 intensive care patients aged 18 and over, who had a nursing diagnosis of bathing personal care deficiency. Each patient was given two types of bed baths at an interval of 24 h: a traditional bed bath and a dry bed bath performed with single-use tissues. Immediately before each bath, in the 5th, 10th and 15th minute of bathing, immediately after bathing and 30 min after bathing, body temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate and peripheral oxygen saturation measurement changes over time were compared within the group using the Friedman test. The Wilcoxon signed ranks test was used to compare the variables of bathing duration and bathing consumable item costs between the bathing procedures.

Results

It was found that at the completion of traditional and dry bed bathing, the participants' body temperature, blood pressure, heart rate and breathing rate parameters were statistically significantly lower than before bathing, whereas peripheral oxygen saturation values showed a significant increase (p < 0.05). It was found that the dry bed bath took a statistically significantly shorter time than the traditional bed bath and that the cost of consumable bathing materials was less (p < 0.05).

Conclusions

It was concluded that traditional and dry bed baths given to intensive care patients affected their hemodynamic parameters and that the dry bed bath was superior to the traditional bed bath in that it took less time and that it cost less.