Introduction:

The control and evaluation of glycemic levels in critically ill patients is a challenge and a responsibility of the nursing team; therefore, determining the consequences of this during hospitalization is key to demonstrate the importance of timely management.

Objective:

To determine the relationship between unstable glycemia (hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia), hospital length of stay, and the hospitalization outcome of patients in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

Methods:

A prospective cohort study conducted with 62 critically ill patients by convenience sampling between March and July 2017. Daily blood samples were collected to measure glycemia. The correlation of unstable glycemia with the hospital length of stay and the hospitalization outcome was assessed using Pearson's chi-square. A p-value <0.05 was considered significant.

Results:

Among the 62 patients, 50% were male and 50% were female. The mean age was 63.3 years (±21.4 years). The incidence of unstable glycemia was 45.2% and was associated with a longer ICU stay (p<0.001) and a progression to death as a hospitalization outcome (p=0.03).

Conclusion:

Among critically ill patients, unstable glycemia was associated with an extended hospital length of stay and a progression to death, emphasizing the importance of nursing intervention to prevent its occurrence.