International wound journal
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The effective approach on pressure ulcer (PU) prevention regarding patient safety in the hospital context was evaluated. Studies were identified from searches in EBSCO host, PubMed, and WebofScience databases from 2009 up to December 2018. Studies were selected if they were published in English, French, Portuguese, or Spanish; incidence of PUs was the primary outcome; participants were adults (≥18 years) admitted in hospital wards and/or units. ⋯ Multiple intervention programmes were more effective in decreasing PU occurrence than single interventions in isolation. Single interventions (prophylactic dressings, support surfaces, repositioning, preventive skin care, system reminders, and education for health care professionals) were effective in decreasing PUs, which was always in compliance with other preventive measures. These results provide an overview of effective approaches that should be considered when establishing evidence-based guidelines to hospital health care professionals and administrators for clinical practice effective in preventing PUs.