Aspectos epidemiológicos da sepse em unidades de terapia intensiva

Objective: to characterize patients that suffered sepsis in Intensive Care Units. Methods: bibliographic research, performed in the Domínio Público and Biblioteca Virtual em Saúde (BVS/BIREME), websites, specifically Base de Dados de Enfermagem (BDENF), Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde (LILACS), Literatura Internacional em Ciências da Saúde (MEDLINE), Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO), with studies ranging from 2001 to April 2009. We used the search words: “Sepse” and “Unidades de Terapia Intensiva”. Results: the male gender was most affected (56%), with a related age group of 57 to 71. The main focal point for the beginning of sepsis was the pulmonary system. The most often identified pathogens were gram-negative germs (65%). The washing of hands was approached on 90% of the related studies as the main procedure for infection control. Conclusions: male individuals were most often afflicted by sepsis and averaged 65 years of age. The pulmonary system was the area most often associated with the beginning of sepsis. Gram-negative bacteria were the pathogens most often found in studies and the washing of hands was the most emphasized procedure for the prevention of infections in this environment. Descriptors: sepsis; intensive care units; cross infection; nursing.