Monthly Archives: March 2015

All About Pressure Ulcers

When caring for a bed or wheelchair confined person there are lots of things to bear in mind, such as making sure their diet is healthy and their hygiene is well kept, but something as simple as changing someone’s position can be easily overlooked. This can lead to severe pressure ulcers, also known as bed sores, forming on sensitive parts of the body due to irritation and continuous pressure. Pressure ulcers are easier to prevent than treat and are much more common on bony parts of the body such as the heels, sacrum, elbows, hips, back, shoulders and bottom. In the most severe cases it can take less than an hour for a pressure ulcer to develop.

How do they develop?

The blood flow through skin is disrupted when a large amount of pressure is applied to an area of skin over a short period of time, but can also form when pressure is applied over a longer amount of time. If the skin has no supply of blood it becomes starved of oxygen and nutrients which eventually leads to pressure ulcers forming.

Who is affected?

Pressure ulcers affect people who find it hard to move such as people confined to a bed or chair. People with Type 2 Diabetes are also prone to pressure ulcers as this condition affects the blood flow through the body. Its estimated that approximately half a million people in the UK alone will develop a pressure ulcer in any given year, usually affecting people with an underlying medical condition such as diabetes or obesity or even people over the age of 70 due to the increased likeliness of them having a