Physiological and psychological effects of noise on cardiac-surgical patients in intensive care units
Date Issued
2006
Date
2006
Author(s)
Hsu, Suh-Meei
DOI
zh-TW
Abstract
The control of noise level is important in hospitals because quietness is essential to rest and treatment of patients，but the growing numbers of medical devices in intensive care units (ICUs) create excessive amount of noise. It frequently exceeds the recommended level and has detrimental psychological and physiological effects. Up to now, there are few studies on the influence of noise to cardiac-surgical patients’ physiology and psychology in ICUs. This cross-sectional, descriptive, and prospective study is to investigate the influence of noise on the physiological and psychological aspects of cardiac-surgical patients in ICUs. Patients, who were admitted to a cardiac surgical ICU in a medical center were prospectively collected for this study. After their admission to ICUs for postoperative care , we measured the surrounding noise level since 2 hours after awakening from anesthesia. The patient’s physiologic parameters including heart rate(HR),systolic arterial blood pressure(SABP),diastolic arterial blood pressure(DABP), and mean arterial blood pressure(MABP) were recorded since 2 hours after extubation.. This study investigated the noise level- time- distribution in ICUs and its physiological effects on cardiac-surgical patients in ICUs. We also developed a questionnaire to evaluate the patients’ subjective perception on the noise level,psychological effects and subjective physiological effects. We also investigate the relationship between noise and the patients’ subjective perception on the noise level,psychological effects and subjective physiological effects in cardiac-surgical patients in ICUs.
Our study showed that the patients’ complained most often about the noises from the monitor alarms, loud conversation among staff, transport of medical devices and ventilator alarms. The noise equivalent continuous sound pressure levels(Leq) is between 59.0-60.8dB(A),the maximal sound pressure levels (Lmax)is between 77.3-81.3dB(A),and the peak sound pressure levels (Lpeak) is above 93dB(A), sometimes reaching 113dB(A), Regarding the patients’ subjective perception on the noise level, most patients felt that the noise level was not loud or a little loud. In addition, the top three psychological effects of noise on cardiac-surgical patients in ICUs are annoyance, startle and anxiety. The top three subjective physiological effects of noise on cardiac-surgical patients in ICUs are insomnia, tachycardia and easy fatigue. Our data also revealed significantly correlation between noise in ICU and objective physiological response(HR,SABP,DABP,MABP). There were significant correlation between noise sensitivity and patient patients’ subjective perception on the noise level, psychological effects of noise including annoyance, anger, anxiety and nervousness, and subjective physiological effects including insomnia, tachycardia. There was significant correlations between marriage and insomnia in objective Physiological response .However, there is no significant correlation among noise itself in ICU and the patients’ subjective perception on the noise level, psychological effects and subjective physiological effect.
Our study can increase the awareness of nursing staff to noises in ICU and help developing noise reduction program by setting up noise control standard for daily clinical care, and eliminating or reducing the noise sources. It is our goal to improve quality of care, prevent adverse effects from excessive
noise, and create a truly therapeutic environment.
Keyword：Noise, Intensive care units, Physiological and Psychological effects
Subjects
噪音
加護單位
身心影響
Noise
Intensive care units
Physiological and Psychological effects
Type
other
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