Abstract
Objective: To identify the occurrence of skin tear skin lesions and to verify their relationship with the functional status of hospitalized elderly. Methods: Descriptive study conducted at a university hospital in Brasília, Distrito Federal, in the Medical and Surgical units, with hospitalized elderly. Collection carried out from February to June 2019. Applied instruments of sociodemographic data, assessment of functional capacity, in addition to physical examination of the skin. Results: Final sample of 32 elderly people, men (56.3%), average age of 68.90 (± 7.51) and mixed race (59.4%). In assessing the capacity for self-care, 34.5% were totally dependent and 18.7% needed partial help. It was observed other types of lesions besides the skin tear, considering that they were bedridden elderly and with fragile skin. The prevalence of patients with skin lesions was 9.4%. Conclusion: Carrying out a thorough physical examination of the skin in the elderly and assessing the risk for skin tears during the hospitalization period are fundamental actions to ensure safety in care, in addition to the inclusion of functional capacity assessment, since the degree of dependence can be a risk factor for the development of this type of injury.