Cuff pressure control in intensive care unit: training effects

Direct cuff pressure to the tracheal wall can cause damage. This paper aimed to verify the effectiveness of nursing team training on cuff pressure control. A retrospective survey was initially made on the records of cuff pressure measurements from January 2007 to June 2008 and the inadequacy percent was verified. Next, a nursing team training program was provided involving all nursing shift teams during June 2008, and after the training the appropriate cuff pressures proportion was prospectively recorded between June and December 2008. The proportion of inappropriate cuff pressure was compared between the work shifts (morning, afternoon and evening-night) and between pre- and post-training, using the qualitative Chi-square test. The 5% limit (p