Blog posts tagged with 'wound care'

Bedsores are easier to prevent than to treat, and changing your position is key to preventing pressure sores. These changes need to be frequent, to avoid stress on the skin, and to minimize the pressure on vulnerable areas. Other strategies include taking good care of your skin, maintaining good nutrition and exercising daily.

Pressure ulcers are caused by increased pressure, shearing (which is pulling of the skin due to slipping down the bed or chair) or friction to the skin. Other things can also add to the risk of developing pressure ulcers.

The incidence or heel pressure ulcers range from 19% to 32% in acute care facilities. Patients with a fractured hip and open reduction with internal fixation have a 45.1% probability of developing a partial-thickness (Stage I-II) heel pressure ulcer.

Pressure Ulcers cost the healthcare system in Europe up to 4% of their annual budget. As more and more people are developing pressure ulcers it is creating a huge cost problem for the healthcare system. Pressure ulcers are a localised injury to the skin or underlying tissue that usually develops over a bony prominence as a result of pressure or pressure with shear or frictional forces.

Previously we have talked about how to spot a pressure ulcer before it becomes a serious problem and in this blog we will cover some of the ways that can help prevent pressure ulcers in the first instance.

If you are worried about a family member or yourself having the possibility of getting a pressure ulcer then please read one of our previous blogs on how to prevent a pressure ulcer from happening, either “Bedsores and Pressure Ulcers” or “The Wound Problem”. Both articles will provide helpful hints and information about avoiding pressure ulcers ever happening to you, the ones you love or those under your care.

The NPUAP (National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel) describes a pressure ulcer as a localised injury to the skin and/or underlying tissue that usually develops over a bony prominence as a result of pressure or pressure with shear or friction forces. This means it is not usually an injury you will get in everyday life, it is something that will be happen to you while you are in hospital and remain motionless for long periods of time. Usually the average person will roll or shift their weight when they are in one position for a long time, this is why it is not caused when sleeping at night or sitting down to work, however when you are in a hospital the freedom to move around isn’t always an option the patient has.

There may be times over the course of a patients treatment that they are required to remain motionless in bed for long periods of time, or sit still in a wheelchair for extended periods… this is when Pressure Ulcers can form. Also commonly referred to as “Bedsores” or “Pressure Sores” they can form over short periods of time if a large amount of pressure is applied to an area of skin, or over a long period of time with constant pressure on an area of skin. This can drastically slow down the patients’ recovery from their original treatment, extending their stay in hospital, further increasing the cost of the treatment to the NHS.

On November 21st health professionals across Europe will come together to share the best practices for avoiding and treating pressure ulcers. This is an important day in the health care community as the impact of pressure ulcers upon patients and their families can be both traumatic and life changing.