Comparison impact of sensory excitation performed by family members and nurses on the level of consciousness in patients who are admitted to Intensive Care Unit

Background: Appropriate sensory excitation can improve brain synaptic contact and establish consciousness. Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the sensory excitation delivered by family members and nurses on the level of consciousness in patients who are admitted to ICU. Method: In this clinical trial, 69 patients admitted to ICU in Ashair and Shafa Hospital, Khorammabad, were randomly assigned into two interventions and one control group. The first intervention group received sensory excitation by family members, and the second intervention group by the nurses. Control group were not received any intervention. Intervention was applied two hours a day at 4-5 pm and 8-9 pm to the intervention groups for six days. For all subjects in these three groups, the level of consciousness was measured twice at 5 minutes before and 30 minutes after intervention by the research assistant using Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS). The data were analyzed by SPSS software version 18 using repeated measures and ANOVA tests. Results: A significant discrepancy was observed between experimental groups in average increasing in GCS before and after intervention based on covariance analysis test results (P