The knowledge of intensive care professionals about diarrhea

OBJECTIVE: To assess the opinions and practices of intensive care professionals with regard to diarrhea in critically ill patients. METHODS: A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted among health care professionals working at three adult intensive care units. Participants responded individually to a self-administered questionnaire about their length of work experience in intensive care; the definition, characterization, and causes of diarrhea; types of records in the patient's medical record; and training received. RESULTS: A total of 78 professionals participated in this study, of whom 59.0% were nurse technicians, 25.7% were nurses, and 15.3% were physicians; 77.0% of them had worked in intensive care for over 1 year. Only 37.2% had received training on this topic. Half of the interviewees defined diarrhea as "liquid and/or pasty stools" regardless of frequency, while the other 50.0% defined diarrhea based on the increased number of daily bowel movements. The majority of them mentioned diet as the main cause of diarrhea, followed by "use of medications" (p<0.001). Distinct nutritional practices were observed among the analyzed professionals regarding episodes of diarrhea, such as discontinuing, maintaining, or reducing the volume of enteral nutrition; physicians reported that they do not routinely communicate the problem to other professionals (for example, to a nutritionist) and do not routinely record and quantify diarrhea events in patients' medical records. CONCLUSION: Different opinions and practices were observed in intensive care professionals with regard to diarrhea.