Nursing intervention in acute or critically ill patients with thirst: an integrated review

Aim: Analyze the existing nursing interventions and their effectiveness in managing thirst and promoting the person’s comfort. Background: Thirst is a symptom often experienced by people hospitalized in an acute and/or critical situation, but it is still frequently under-evaluated and under-treated in clinical practice, one of the main reasons being the difficulty in assessing thirst when it comes to people with an altered state of consciousness. Methods: To analyze the existing nursing interventions in managing thirst and promoting the person’s comfort, an integrative review was elaborated through electronic databases MEDLINE, CINAHL, PubMed, and other sources from March 2023 to August 2023. The review protocol is registered (PROSPERO CRD42023413584) and this review integrates a Project in a Higher School of Nursing. Results: After assessing eligibility, 16 final documents were obtained for data extraction and analysis. The results obtained show that several effective strategies were identified to thirst relief, such as drinking cold liquids, ingestion of carbohydrate drinks when fasting is really necessary, the use of ice, performing oral hygiene, applying lip moisturizer, using mentholated substances, controlling the ambient temperature, use of salivary stimulants and artificial saliva. Conclusions: This is a sensitive area of nursing care. Thus, a more significant investment in the scope of nursing research and the development of innovative technology that can improve nursing interventions for the management and thirst relief, would be beneficial to improve the quality of the nursing care provided for hospitalized patients in critical care.