Abstract
Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the most frequent hospital-acquired infection among ventilated patients. The purpose of this study was to evaluate factors affecting the development of VAP and to verify the hypothesis that postural change decreases the incidence of VAP. We performed a retrospective observational study on patients who had been admitted to the emergency room of a Showa university hospital between January 2008 and September 2010. A total of 111 patients who matched the inclusion criteria were involved in this study. VAP developed in 32 patients (28.8%); compared to the patients without VAP, the ones who developed VAP had greater amounts of transfusion and higher rates of blood transfusion, enteral nutrition, and continuous infusion of muscle relaxant. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that a longer duration of mechanical ventilation was independently associated with the development of VAP. An increase in postural change within 24 hours of endotracheal intubation did not have influence on the incidence of VAP. Our results suggest that an increase in postural change within 24 hours of endotracheal intubation may not prevent the incidence of VAP.
