RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONSTIPATION AND OUTCOME IN PATIENTS UNDERGOING MECHANICAL VENTILATION IN THE INTENSIVE CARE UNIT OF URMIA IMAM KHOMEINI HOSPITAL: A RETROSPECTIVE 5-YEAR STUDY

Considering the high prevalence of constipation and its possible impact on the
outcomes of patients admitted to the intensive care unit, we decided to conduct a retrospective cross-
sectional study with the aim of investigating the frequency and consequences of constipation in patients
undergoing mechanical ventilation in General Intensive Care Unit (GICU) of Urmia Imam Khomeini
Hospital in a 5-years period (2012-2016).
Materials & Methods: In this study, patients were divided into two groups (with and without
constipation). Demographic information, APACHE II score, frequency of constipation, duration of
mechanical ventilation, length of staying in intensive care unit, length of hospitalization, and mortality
of patients were extracted from clinical records of the patients and entered in the checklist and were
statistically analyzed at the end of the study (p <0.05).
Results: The mean duration of mechanical ventilation was 14.37± 10 10.08 days, the mean length of
staying in the intensive care unit was 18.67± 11. 11.31 days, and the mean of hospitalization was 28.82
17± 17.71 days. There was a significant difference between the duration of mechanical ventilation,
length of staying in ICU, and hospitalization in patients with and without constipation (p <0.05). While
there was a statistically significant difference between patients’ mortality and sex (p <0.05).
Conclusion: This retrospective cross-sectional study with a slight difference in the frequency of
constipation with confirmation of previous studies showed a relationship among duration of mechanical
ventilation, staying in intensive care unit, and hospitalization with constipation. Although no significant
difference was found in mortality between the two groups, there was a statistically significant difference
between mortality and sex of patients