Impact of the creation and implementation of a clinical management guideline for personality disorders in reducing use of mechanical restraints in a psychiatric inpatient unit.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of the implementation of a guideline for the management of personality disorders on reducing the frequency of use of mechanical restraints in a psychiatric inpatient unit.

Method: This retrospective study was conducted in a psychiatric inpatient unit with 42 beds, which serves an urban area of 330,000 inhabitants. The sample consisted of all patients with a clinical diagnosis of personality disorder (DSM-IV-TR criteria) who were admitted to the unit from January 2010 to December 2010 and from January 2011 to December 2011 (ie, before and after, respectively, the implementation of the guideline).