Comparison the Effects of Shallow and Deep Endotracheal Tube Suctioning on Respiratory Rate, Arterial Blood Oxygen Saturation and Number of Suctioning in Patients Hospitalized in the Intensive Care Unit: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Introduction: Endotracheal tube suctioning is essential for improve oxygenation in the patients undergoing mechanical ventilation. There are two types of shallow and deep endotracheal tube suctioning. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of shallow and deep suctioning methods on respiratory rate (RR), arterial blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) and number of suctioning in patients hospitalized in the intensive care units of Al-Zahra Hospital, Isfahan, Iran. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, 74 patients who hospitalized in the intensive care units of Isfahan Al-Zahra Hospital were randomly allocated to the shallow and deep suctioning groups. RR and SpO2 were measured immediately before, immediately after, 1 and 3 minute after each suctioning. Number of suctioning was also noted in each groups. Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance (RMANOVA), chi-square and independent t-tests. Results: RR was significantly increased and SpO2 was significantly decreased after each suctioning in the both groups. However, these changes were not significant between the two groups. The numbers of suctioning was significantly higher in the shallow suctioning group than in the deep suctioning group. Conclusion: Shallow and deep suctioning had a similar effect on RR and SpO2. However, shallow suctioning caused further manipulation of patient’s trachea than deep suctioning method. Therefore, it seems that deep endotracheal tube suctioning method can be used to clean the airway with lesser manipulation of the trachea.