Early rehabilitation for critically ill patients with ICU-acquired weakness: a quasi-experimental study

Background: Intensive care unit-acquired weakness is a severe complication, and early rehabilitation can improve health outcomes in critically ill patients. Objective: To examine the health outcomes sensitive to rehabilitation nursing care in critically ill patients diagnosed with intensive care unit-acquired weakness. Methodology: This quasi-experimental study uses a non-probability sample of 80 patients distributed between an experimental group and a control group. The groups received the same rehabilitation nursing care intervention, differing only in the number and frequency of implementation due to the different time intervals of each group. Results: EG participants revealed a greater functional independence in the transfer, greater muscle strength at the moment of discharge, decreased mean number of days under sedation, receiving invasive mechanical ventilation and of hospitalization, and lower scores in the Therapeutic Intervention Scoring System-28 at the moment of discharge. Conclusion: The increased number and frequency of rehabilitation nursing care interventions improved health outcomes in critically ill patients.