Absence of pressure ulcers is increasingly being used as an indicator of quality nursing care, based on the premise that pressure ulcers are preventable. This retrospective study examined the occurrence, presentation, and timing of pressure ulcer development in 150 patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Pressure ulcer incidents were recorded in groups ...

Noninvasive functional magnetic stimulation (FMS) of the sacral nerve roots can activate gluteal muscles. We propose the use of sacral anterior root stimulator (SARS) implants to prevent ischial pressure ulcers in the spinal cord injury (SCI) population. In this study, we (1) investigated the acute effects of sacral FMS on ...

A criterion-referenced Web-based test was designed and administered to 256 individuals at 48 randomly sampled National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI) member hospitals to determine the reliability of the NDNQI pressure ulcer indicator. Overall kappa values for pressure ulcer identification, staging, and sourcing indicate moderate to near perfect reliability. ...

OBJECTIVES: To determine differences between alternating pressure overlays and alternating pressure replacement mattresses with respect to the development of new pressure ulcers, healing of existing pressure ulcers, patient acceptability and cost-effectiveness of the different pressure-relieving surfaces. Also to investigate the specific additional impact of pressure ulcers on patients' well-being. DESIGN: ...

To evaluate the ability of research nurses to identify pressure ulcers, the authors assembled digital photographs of the skin of 160 consenting elderly patients (80% African American, 63% women). The series included 39 photos of pressure ulcers, 109 of normal skin, and 12 of other skin conditions, determined by consensus ...

ABSTRACT Cultivar mixtures can reduce potato late blight severity on susceptible cultivars. While alternating rows of susceptible and resistant cultivars would be more acceptable than random mixtures for commercial use, they increase the genotype unit area, which is an unfavorable factor for mixture efficiency, and have been minimally efficient when ...

This study assessed whether glycosylated hemoglobin could be used as an index to distinguish between iron-deficiency anemia and thalassemia minor. Glycosylated hemoglobin was measured by high-pressure liquid chromatography in 40 ss -thalassemia minor patients, 20 iron-deficiency anemia patients, and 38 healthy controls, all nondiabetic. Median glycosylated hemoglobin was lower in ...

To assess the cost effectiveness of alternating pressure mattresses compared with alternating pressure overlays for the prevention of pressure ulcers in patients admitted to hospital. Cost effectiveness analysis carried out alongside the pressure relieving support surfaces (PRESSURE) trial; a multicentre UK based pragmatic randomised controlled trial. 11 hospitals in six ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine if educating nursing home staff about pressure ulcer prevention reduces the differential risk of pressure ulcer development in black and white nursing home residents. DESIGN: Subanalysis of a study designed to monitor the emergence of all pressure ulcers in nursing home residents during 12-week baseline and intervention ...

Transmission of the fox tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis, the causative agent of human alveolar echinococcosis, is known to depend on various environmental factors which are subject to human influence. Epidemiological data suggest that in most endemic regions anthropogenic landscape changes (e.g. deforestation and agricultural practices) have led to more favourable conditions ...

In the Soa Basin of central Flores, eastern Indonesia, stratified archaeological sites, including Mata Menge, Boa Lesa and Kobatuwa (Fig. 1), contain stone artefacts associated with the fossilized remains of Stegodon florensis, Komodo dragon, rat and various other taxa. These sites have been dated to 840-700 kyr bp (thousand years ...

This article outlines the principle areas for consideration form the NICE (2005) guideline for pressure ulcer prevention and treatment. All key areas are included and recommendations made for their implementation into clinical practice. A conclusion is made that pressure ulcer prevention is a key indicator of quality care and that ...

To compare whether differences exist between alternating pressure overlays and alternating pressure mattresses in the development of new pressure ulcers, healing of existing pressure ulcers, and patient acceptability. Pragmatic, open, multicentre, randomised controlled trial. 11 hospitals in six NHS trusts. 1972 people admitted to hospital as acute or elective patients. ...

Blood stain patterns from wounds are determined in part by the nature of the injuries, but also by the types of vessels that have been traumatised. Characteristic spray from arterial injury usually results in a fine projected bloodstain pattern, often found at some distance from the victim. In contrast, venous ...

The problem is that when the surface of the body is denervated, it is liable to break down from a number of widely different mechanical stresses. The obvious common factor of denervation or loss of sensation has allowed many workers to assume that loss of nerves is the most significant ...

The primary cause of pressure sores is the interference with the blood supply of the tissues which, if prolonged, will result in their death. In most cases, the prolonged pressure which occludes vessels is caused by the inability of the patient to feel pain and/or move. Fortunately the surface area ...

OBJECTIVE: We compared the shear forces exerted over the heel between a pressure ulcer preventive dressing and a thin-film dressing in a clinical setting. Interface pressures were measured as well. DESIGN: Quasi-experimental clinical trial. SETTING AND SUBJECTS: Participants were 30 elderly patients (5 men, 25 women; mean age, 86.4 +/- ...

Pressure ulcers cause distress to patients and give health professionals cause for concern because of the dramatic effects on patients' quality of life, as well as the implications for resources (Hampton and Collins 2001). By understanding the changes in tissue physiology that take place and the complications of sitting, nurses ...

BACKGROUND: The pathology literature suggests three types of pressure ulcer with six possible mechanisms leading to tissue breakdown. A limitation of current evidence is the difficulty in replicating the clinical situation and in determining the point at which a tissue assault becomes irreversible and results in tissue breakdown. In particular ...

BACKGROUND: Pressure ulcers frequently occur in hospitalised patients. The prevalence of pressure ulcers grade 2 or worse varies from 3% to 12% in hospitalised patients. Incidence figures are not frequently reported. While incidence and prevalence are both measures of disease frequency, they provide different perspectives on pressure ulcers. OBJECTIVES: To ...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of gluteal neuromuscular electric stimulation (NMES) using implanted percutaneous electrodes to improve regional tissue health and decrease the risk of pressure ulcer development. DESIGN: Case study of long-term use of gluteal NMES. SETTING: Community. PARTICIPANT: A patient with a C4-level American Spinal Injury Association grade ...

AIM: This paper reports a systematic review conducted to determine the effectiveness of the use of risk assessment scales for pressure ulcer prevention in clinical practice, degree of validation of risk assessment scales, and effectiveness of risk assessment scales as indicators of risk of developing a pressure ulcer. BACKGROUND: Pressure ...

AIM: This paper reports a study examining the interrater and intrarater reliability of classifying pressure ulcers according to the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel classification system when using photographs of pressure ulcers and incontinence lesions. BACKGROUND: Pressure ulcer classification is an essential tool for assessing ulcers and their severity and ...

AIM: This research was conducted for the purpose of determining the incidence of surgery-related pressure ulcer formation. BACKGROUND: Patients undergoing surgery are prone to develop pressure ulcers during surgery. Pressure ulcer incidence in surgery population is reported between 3.5% and 29.5%. Some of these factors that occur during surgery are ...

PURPOSE: Clinicians often observe child wheelchair users wheeling on tyres that are not inflated to manufacturer's recommendations. The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in energy expenditure that are related to decreased tyre pressure. METHODS: A within subject repeated measures design was used to assess the energy requirements ...

Habitat fragmentation is expected to impose strong selective pressures on dispersal rates. However, evolutionary responses of dispersal are not self-evident, since various selection pressures act in opposite directions. Here we disentangled the components of dispersal behavior in a metapopulation context using the Virtual Migration model, and we linked their variation ...

The ontogeny of suction feeding performance, as measured by peak suction generating capacity, was studied in the common snook, Centropomus undecimalis. Suction pressure inside the buccal cavity is a function of the total expansive force exerted on the buccal cavity distributed across the projected area of the buccal cavity. Thus, ...

The use of automated systems in the modern microbiology laboratory is becoming commonplace as the pressure of cost containment impacts on staff resources. With increased international travel and threats of bioterrorism, recognition and accurate identification of organisms such as Burkholderia pseudomallei is important. In areas where this organism is endemic, ...

BACKGROUND: Pressure ulcers represent a major cost to the healthcare systems of the world but preventative measures are expensive and could be better targeted. Current risk screening mechanisms are often subjective and could be improved. AIMS: To evaluate whether a biochemical assessment tool (Prognostic Inflammatory and Nutritional Index; PINI) based ...

A 15-year-old male died of cardiac rupture due to blunt chest trauma from a traffic accident involving a low-speed scooter carrying 3 people and a head-on collision with a tree. The victim was sitting on the footrest of the scooter. It was concluded that the victim was compressed between the ...

Recently, an interesting question has emerged in the evolutionary interpretation of sequence substitution data as evidence of amino acid selection pressure. Specifically, the Ka/Ks metric was designed to measure selection pressure on amino acid substitutions, assuming that the synonymous substitution rate Ks reflects the neutral nucleotide substitution rate. However, there ...

Published data on accidents in human crowds that occurred over the past decade show that one of the fatal consequences of crowding was asphyxia, that is by crushing. Here a study was made of our ability to predict human crowd pressures at barriers and thereby be able to take preventive ...

Pressure ulcers are areas of soft tissue breakdown that result from sustained mechanical loading of the skin and underlying tissues. Today, little is known with respect to the aetiology of these ulcers. This study introduces an in vitro model system to study the effects of clinically relevant loading regimes on ...

Islands are often considered easier to invade than mainland locations because of lower biotic resistance, but this hypothesis is difficult to test. We compared invasion success (the probability of establishing a wild reproducing population) for bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana) introduced to enclosures on 26 farms on islands in the Zhoushan archipelago ...

Hospitals in the US are increasingly concerned with the rising number of hospital-acquired pressure ulcers. To reduce its 2002-2003 average hospital-acquired pressure ulcer prevalence rate of 9.2%, a regional medical center in southeastern US initiated a process improvement and education program. Quarterly pressure ulcer prevalence studies were conducted and the ...

OBJECTIVES: To identify independent predictors for development of pressure ulcers in hospitalized patients and to develop a simple prediction rule for pressure ulcer development. DESIGN: The Prevention and Pressure Ulcer Risk Score Evaluation (prePURSE) study is a prospective cohort study in which patients are followed up once a week until ...

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: In this experimental study, a 4-cm thermoactive viscoelastic foam overlay and a heating source on the operating room table was compared with the standard operating room table with a heating source for the effect on the postoperative pressure ulcer incidence in cardiac surgery patients. BACKGROUND: Pressure ulcer ...

Pressure ulcers complicate the hospital course of critically injured or ill patients. Guidelines have been promulgated to prevent pressure ulcers in hospitalized patients. The purpose of this study was to determine whether these guidelines have, in fact, reduced the incidence of pressure sores. The authors examined census data from the ...

Background Patients that develop a pressure ulcer whilst in hospital can expect to stay at least four extra
days. Once discharged to the community for continuation of wound management for pressure ulcers, the
epidemiology of these patients, together with patients who develop pressure ulcers at home, is unknown.
Aims a) To estimate the ...

Pressure ulcers are widely considered to be a critical problem in rehabilitation since they result in severe discomfort and high healthcare cost. The prevention of pressure ulcers is a constant preoccupation for every nursing team. This paper introduces a novel handheld instrument that can detect subtle changes in the skin ...

Multiple pressure sores represent recurrent problem in immobilized, mostly paretic patients. A lot of them undergo repeated surgeries and thus the positions of scars, directions of rotation or transposition of flaps limit other operations in the region. Then usually the length of hospital stay grows proportionally with the number of ...

The occurrence of pressure ulcers in patients is very high in certain high-risk groups. These special high-risk groups include elderly patients, patients with spinal cord injuries, or any individual with an impaired ability to reposition. Prevention of pressure ulcers is by far the best treatment of this condition, warranting certain ...

As the American Psychoanalytic Association faces mounting external pressures that threaten its very survival, its leadership and members appear increasingly preoccupied with issues of internal governance and training standards. This inward gazing, though in keeping with analysts' personality and occupational traits, serves to obscure and defend against the anxieties associated ...

This article overviews research in the interdisciplinary area of textile/skin interaction and related cutaneous intolerance. Microclimate in the skin/clothing system and especially the skin responses relates to the moisture and heat transfer within this system and plays a critical role in skin irritation from textiles. A discussion is then given ...

We made an algorithm by extracting the caring elements for the patients to develop a program for pressure ulcer prevention. The algorithm consisted of observation of the patient skin as a beginning point, extraction of the risk factors for pressure ulcer development, intervention to each risk factor, and evaluation. The ...

Pressure ulcers are complex chronic wounds for which no gold standard for prevention or treatment has yet been established. Several attempts at developing guidelines has been undertaken by different organizations. Pressure ulcers are devastating comorbidities for patients and difficult to prevent or manage. Whether or not pressure ulcers are preventable ...

Pressure ulcers are a serious health problem for people with mobility disorders, like elders in acute care, long-term care, and home care settings. It also concerns paraplegics, tetraplegics or persons with burned injuries. Pressure ulcers result in significant morbidity and mortality. Consequences are a high human suffering, with high cost ...

Pressure ulcers constitute an important health problem. They affect lots of people with mobility disorder and they are difficult to detect and prevent because the damage begins on the muscle. This paper proposes a new approach to study pressure ulcers. We aim at developing a methodology to analyse the probability ...

Pressure ulcers are defined as areas "of localized damage to the skin and underlying tissue caused by pressure, shear, friction and/or the combination of these". In the UK, pressure ulcers occur in 5 to 32% of District General Hospitals people and in 4 to 7% of people in community settings. ...

It has been observed in previous studies that the detection of stage I pressure ulcers becomes more difficult by unaided visual inspection and/or by using currently available techniques with darker skin subjects, due to increased melanin content. This difficulty is indicated by the elevated proportion of black and hispanic patients ...