The Effect of Position Change and Bed-Rest Duration after Coronary Angiography on Vascular Complications

Improper positioning and excessive immobility has serious side effects on patients after angiography. The present study tries to determine the effects of position change and bed-rest duration on vascular complications after angiography.

In a random clinical trial, 130 patients, who had undergone a coronary angiography via the femoral artery, were randomly assigned into a test and a control group (each group consisting 65 participants). The patients in the test group experienced position changes in four hours. For two hours, they rested with a sand bag in their bed. In the fourth hour, they were allowed to leave the bed. The patients in the control group received routine treatment. Vascular complications were investigated in both groups at regular intervals. The required samples were randomly taken from among patients of “Research and Education Center of Rasht” in two months, in 1389. The collected data was analyzed by applying descriptive and inferential statistics and also SPSS16 software.

In the test group, bleeding occurred in one of the patients in the fourth hour. It also happened for one of the patients of the control group immediately after coming to ward (p<0315). In the second hour, in the test group, hematoma occurred in one of the patients. It was also observed in one of the patients of the control group during the first and the second hour (p<0.315). In the fourth hour, two cases of hematoma were observed among the patients of the control group (p<0.154). The Fisher’s exact test proved no significant difference between the two groups.

In accordance with the findings of this study, position change and early ambulation after angiography do not increase the risk of vascular complications, can bring patients some comfort, and result in their earlier discharge from hospitals.