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Multiple-Input Multiple-Output Radar for Monitoring of Bed-Ridden Patients
Published in Moeness G. Amin, Radar for Indoor Monitoring, 2017
“Pressure ulcers are localized areas of soft-tissue injury resulting from compression between a bony prominence and an external surface and can lead to septic infection and premature death” [12]. By definition, pressure ulcers occur most commonly in elderly people due to their limited mobility [13], and nursing home residence is a major risk [14]. Evidence shows that at least one of every nine patients in nursing homes is experiencing a pressure ulcer [15]. The cost to treat pressure ulcers is estimated to be from $21,000 to $152,000 per case [16], which makes low-cost prevention a priority in most U.S. nursing homes. Also, the number of pressure ulcers can increase in the future, because one in every five adults will be more than 65 years by 2030 [13]. Therefore, pressure ulcer prevention is an important issue for nursing homes nowadays and in the future, and effective prevention can reduce the number of pressure ulcers and thus avoid expensive treatment costs.
Light and moderate work
Published in Karl H.E. Kroemer, Fitting the Human, 2017
Cases of nearly intolerably long and immobile sitting occur in long-distance automobile driving and airplane flying. A truck driver who must cover a long distance may have to remain seated with hands on the wheel, feet on the pedals, and eyes on the road for many hours before getting up and stretching the body. A military pilot who has to fly a long mission is even worse off, because there is no way of getting up and out. The solution tried in World War II airplanes was to have separate, air-filled sections in the pilot seat that would automatically inflate and deflate. Such pulsating body support can provide some relief from constant pressure on the body. Persons who cannot move, such as some ill patients, often develop pressure ulcers (bedsores) on those body parts that transfer most weight. Moving about instead of remaining still is essential for well-being and well-feeling.
Healthcare Environment and Infection Control
Published in Herman Koren, Best Practices for Environmental Health, 2017
Prevent pressure ulcers when patients spend extended amounts of time in bed by frequently changing their position in bed, cleaning the skin and drying it well, and using specialized pressure-relieving medical beds or other devices.
Comparison of the effectiveness of assisted turning mattresses and conventional air mattresses in relieving body pressure in different lying positions
Published in Assistive Technology, 2023
Shu-Fang Vivienne Wu, Li-Min Kuo, Juin-Ming Tsai, Li-Ju Lin, Chun-Hua Chu, Ying-Yi Liao
Pressure ulcers are common in individuals who spend most of their day in bed for medical reasons. Pressure ulcers are localized skin or underlying tissue damage from pressure (European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel, 2019). Pressure ulcers mainly occur at bony prominences (e.g., the sacrum, sciatic nodule, ankles, and heels). According to results from the International Pressure Ulcer Survey, the incidence of pressure ulcers from 1989 to 2005 was 5.6% to 15.5% among acute care, long-term acute care, and long-term care facilities (Vangilder et al., 2008; Wang et al., 2015). However, a 4-year longitudinal study showed that the incidence of moderate and severe pressure ulcers in American nursing home residents was highly variable, ranging from 2% to 16% (Hartmann et al., 2016). In particular, patients with poor nutritional status, hip fractures or stroke leading to disability, or bed confinement were at high risk for pressure ulcers. In addition, pressure ulcers increase the risk of sepsis and death from open wounds in patients, resulting in higher caregivers’ workload and medical costs. In the United Kingdom (UK), the cost of treating pressure ulcers increases with severe grades and varies from £42.73 to £470.4 per capita per day (Dealey et al., 2012). In Australia, the mean financial cost of pressure injuries ranges from $699 to $840 Australian dollars (£374 to £449) per hospital bed day (Norman et al., 2016).
Validating a wheelchair in-seat activity tracker
Published in Assistive Technology, 2022
Nauman Ahad, Sharon E. Sonenblum, Mark A. Davenport, Stephen Sprigle
Wheelchair users, especially users with spinal cord injuries, experience limited sensory cues to move within their chairs. This leads to extended periods of stationary sitting (Sonenblum et al., 2016) which causes extensive loading of body tissues, particularly around the ischial tuberosities and sacrum and coccyx. Increased loading of tissues, both in magnitude and duration, can hinder blood and oxygen supply to tissues which can cause pressure ulcers. About 46% of 300,000 people with spinal cord injuries in the United States experience pressure ulcers (N.S.C.I.S.C, 2015). After sustaining spinal cord injuries, more than 20% require costly surgeries to manage these ulcers (Saunders et al., 2012). The recurrence rate for pressure ulcers can be up to 79% which further adds to healthcare costs (Bates-Jensen et al., 2009). These pressure ulcers can become infected, leading to life-threatening complications such as sepsis – such complications are associated with mortality rates of 48%.(N.S.C.I.S.C, 2015).
The relationship between torso inclination and the shearing force of the buttocks while seated in a wheelchair: Preliminary research in non-disabled individuals
Published in Assistive Technology, 2020
Satoshi Shirogane, Shigeru Toyama, Atsushi Takashima, Toshiaki Tanaka
For wheelchair users, the development of pressure ulcers on the supporting surface of the buttocks presents a serious risk that warrants concern (Allman, 1997). Past investigations have revealed that among those who are unable to ambulate without assistance, including the elderly and individuals with spinal cord injuries, pressure ulcers occur with alarming frequency (Brandeis, Morris, Nash, & Lipsitz, 1990; Brienza et al., 2010; Chen, DeVivo, & Jackson, 2005). Furthermore, once these ulcers develop they require significant treatment and may potentially lower an individual’s quality of life (Gorecki et al., 2009). Pressure ulcers develop when external pressures to some body parts cause blood flow in the soft tissues between the skin and bones in that area to either decrease or cease. If this continues over time, the tissue falls into a state of irreversible ischemic damage (Grey, Enoch, & Harding, 2006). Causative factors include pressure and numerous other compounding factors. Currently, the exact pathological mechanism is not completely understood. Therefore, in clinical settings it is common to carry out “seating” interventions, including wheelchair and cushion adjustments that make them more compatible (i.e. altering or adjusting devices to conform them to the bodily condition of the patient). This method disperses the pressure placed on the surface of the body, thus preventing it from accumulating at any single point. It is recommended to reduce the length of time that patients sit; however, that is the extent of the available countermeasures (NPUAP, 2014).