The effect of duration of pressure on bruising and pain in the subcutaneous heparin injection site

Abstract

Aim The aim of this study was to determine the effect on pain and bruising of pressure applied for different durations after subcutaneous heparin injection. Methods This research was a quasi-experimental study. The research was performed with 60 patients. Two different injection techniques were applied at an interval of 24 hr to each patient taking part in the study. Method A: after the low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) injection, pressure was applied with dry cotton for 10 s directly after the needle was withdrawn. Method B: after the LMWH injection, pressure was applied with dry cotton for 60 s directly after the needle was withdrawn. After the injection process was completed, the dimension of the bruising formed were evaluated. Also, after the injection process was completed, the patients were asked to show on a visual analog scale the severity of pain felt during the injection. Statistical analysis of the research data was performed with the statistics package IBM SPSS 22.0. The Wilcoxon signed rank test and the Mann-Whitney U test were used in the analysis of the data. Results The results of the statistical analysis showed no statistically significant difference between the mean size of bruising and pain level according to the duration of pressure applied to the injection area (p > .05). Conclusions It was concluded in this study that the duration of pressure applied to the injection site after subcutaneous LMWH injection did not affect the size of bruising or the severity of pain, and, unlike in the literature, that 60 s of applied pressure did not have a positive effect. Also, it was found that gender had an effect on the formation of bruising and the severity of pain, and body mass index had an effect on pain severity. Ten seconds of pressure applied to the injection site after subcutaneous LMWH injection may be enough to reduce complications.