Arterial Blood Gas Levels, Oxygen Saturation, and Pressure Injury Risk in ICU Patients
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- This is an observational study: the protocol does not assign a study treatment.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Pressure Injury, Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Basic parameters: from 18 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Turkey (Türkiye)
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Investigation of the Relationship Between Arterial Blood Gas Parameters, Oxygen Saturation, and the Risk of Pressure Injury Development in Intensive Care Patients
Overview
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between arterial blood gas (ABG) parameters and oxygen saturation (SpO₂) levels and the risk of pressure injury development in patients hospitalized in intensive care units, and to provide a scientific contribution to the processes for assessing pressure injury risk based on the findings obtained.
Detailed description
Pressure injuries are defined as localized damage to the skin and/or underlying soft tissue caused by prolonged pressure and/or shear forces, and they most commonly occur over bony prominences (Han et al., 2025). In intensive care patients, these injuries lead to serious consequences such as pain, risk of infection, prolonged hospital stay, and mortality (Labeau et al., 2021). In critically ill patients, inadequate tissue perfusion and oxygenation are identified as one of the main pathophysiological mechanisms involved in the development of pressure injuries (Han et al., 2025). Hypoxia, which occurs when cells are unable to meet their metabolic needs, reduces tissue tolerance and adversely affects the healing process. While insufficient oxygen inhibits collagen synthesis and cellular regeneration, it also reduces blood flow by causing vasoconstriction (Lucchini et al., 2024). This causes tissues in areas exposed to pressure to be more easily damaged.
Therefore, monitoring oxygenation levels is critically important in predicting the risk of pressure injury development. Han et al. (2024) demonstrated that as PaO₂ levels decrease, the risk of pressure injury increases significantly, and that this relationship is supported by a nonlinear dose-response curve. On the other hand, it has been suggested that oxygen saturation may be a more reliable indicator than PaO₂, and that the risk may increase up to sixfold at low oxygen saturation levels (Rahimi-Bashar et al., 2025).
In this context, this study aims to evaluate the relationship between arterial blood gas parameters - pH, PaO₂, PaCO₂, and HCO₃- - and oxygen saturation (SpO₂) levels and the risk of pressure injury development in intensive care patients from the perspective of nursing care.
Primary outcome measures
- Risk of Pressure Injury Development [Time frame: From intensive care unit admission until discharge from the intensive care unit or study completion, up to 12 months.]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- Patients who have been hospitalized in the intensive care unit for at least 72 hours,
- Patients aged 18 years and older,
- Patients who are conscious or sedated and from whom an arterial blood gas sample can be obtained,
- Patients or their relatives who agree to participate in the study.
Exclusion criteria
- Patients with superficial skin lesions or existing pressure injuries, or a history of pressure injuries,
- Patients whose intensive care unit stay is shorter than 72 hours,
- Patients diagnosed with diabetes,
- Patients with circulatory problems.
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Observational model
- Other
Study locations
Turkey (Türkiye) · 1 center
- Prof. Dr. Cemil Tascıoglu City Hospital — Istanbul
Identifiers
NCT: NCT07691710 · IU-MSC-044