Control
dryness
The patients assigned to the control group received the conventional care or usual care of protecting the skin with petroleum, which is a semisolid combination of hydrocarbons obtained from refined petroleum; it is also known as petrolatum, white petrolatum, or soft paraffin, as well as Vaseline, which is a brand name. It is widely used in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry and is the excipient of many prevention methods. Petrolatum functions as an inert barrier and moisturizer, able to penetrate the upper layers of the substratum corneum. Specifically, it decreases water loss through the epidermis, and prevent kin dryness maintaining skin moisture. Further, it is easy to apply and remove; the skin can be seen through the jelly, and it is inexpensive and widely availableThis intervention had to be applied without massage once by shift (once in the morning, afternoon, and once at night) by nursing staff in charge of caring the patient, in the same high-risk areas as the intervention group and was standardized in both hospitals (Table All participants in both the intervention and control group were repositioned every 2–4 h, avoiding friction, using support surfaces [pillows] to reduce pressure, and using the anti-bedsore mattress, in accordance with the same clinical practice guidelines implemented in both institutions for 10 years