The impact of ostomy nursing care on the risk of postoperative ostomy complications

Introduction The most common risk factors for ostomy complications include the cause of stoma emergence (cancer, inflammatory bowel diseases), the type of stoma, concomitant diseases, and stoma care during pre- and postoperative periods. Aim In this study, authors assessed the impact of stoma care and stoma site designation prior to surgery based on the occurrence of ostomy complications. Material and methods The study included 104 patients (49 women, 54 men, with the mean subject age being 57 years) in whom a stoma was diagnosed in 2010–2022. The study was conducted in a group of patients who were diagnosed with an intestinal stoma between 2010–2022. Results and discussion The overall risk of ostomy complications was 84.62%, and the most common complication in the analysed arm was dermatitis around the stoma, which occurred in 78 patients (75% of participants). The study found a 13-fold increase in the risk of ostomy complications in patients who were not under the care of a stoma nurse and in whom a stoma site was not determined prior to surgery (RR = 13.11, CI: 4.21–58.64, <i>P</i> < 0.001). The analysis found a lower risk of dermatitis in patients under the care of a stoma nurse when compared to stoma patients without such care (RR = 0.38, CI: 0.16–0.78, <i>P</i> = 0.014). Conclusions The outcomes of this study confirmed that the stoma site should be determined prior to any surgical procedure in which there is a risk of stoma emergence. In addition, every patient with a stoma should be under the care of a stoma nurse pre- and post-operatively.