Pressure Injury on Poststroke Admission Assessment to Skilled Nursing Facilities: Risk Factors, Management, and Impact on Rehabilitation

Objective: To describe pressure injury (PrI) prevalence, comorbidities, and rehabilitation utilization among older adults with stroke at skilled nursing facilities’ (SNFs’) admission assessment. Design: Retrospective cohort. Setting and Participants: Older Medicare beneficiaries (>65 years old) with stroke admitted to SNFs. Methods: We extracted data between 2013 and 2014 using the Master Beneficiary Summary, Medicare Provider Analysis and Review, and Minimum Data Set 3.0. PI data were assessed during admission assessment. Results: Of the 65,330 older adults poststroke admitted to SNFs, 11% had at least 1 PrI present on admission assessment. Individuals who were non-Hispanic Black, with a longer hospital stay, from lower socioeconomic status, with higher proportions of comorbidities (eg, underweight, urinary and bowel incontinence, diabetes, congestive heart failure, arrhythmias, and infections), and higher functional impairments were likely to present with a PrI at SNF admission assessment. Compared with individuals with superficial PrI, individuals with deep PrI were more likely to be young-old (<75 years), non-Hispanic Black, from lower socioeconomic status, present with a shorter hospital stay, an intensive care unit stay, with higher functional impairments, skin integrity issues, system failure, and infections. Compared to those without PrI or superficial PrI, individuals with any-stage PrI or deep PrI were more likely to be cotreated by physical and occupational therapist and less likely to receive individual therapy. Those with PrI poststroke had low documented turning and repositioning rates than those without PrI. Conclusions and Implications: Identifying modifiable risk factors to prevent PrIs poststroke in SNFs will facilitate targeted preventative interventions and improve wound care efficacy and rehabilitation utilization for optimized patient outcomes. Identifying residents with a higher risk of PrI during acute care discharge and providing early preventive care during post-acute care would possibly decrease costs and improve outcome quality.