Heart & lung : the journal of critical care
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Multicenter Study
Pain intensity and postoperative pulmonary complications among the elderly after abdominal surgery.
The purpose of this study was to determine whether postoperative pain intensity differs between elderly abdominal surgery patients in whom postoperative pulmonary complications (PPC) develop and those in whom they do not. ⋯ Results provide support for viewing pain as a factor that contributes to the development of PPCs among the elderly population after abdominal surgery. Therefore, nursing interventions of pain assessment and management, deep breathing, and ambulation may influence the incidence of this outcome.