Development of bedsores on a loved one is not an easy ordeal to go through. Bedsores are very painful and most of the time need multiple months’ worth of treatment before healing completely. And if that’s not enough, bedsores could be fatal if not taken care of immediately, which is why it’s very important that all of the family members get involved in knowing how to treat bedsores.

There are few practical methods that can help you treat bedsores should the need arise. Aside from that, these methods also determine whether the loved one is getting the appropriate care and attention from the hospital staff or nursing home. In addition, it is highly recommended that you arm yourself with information regarding the rights of a bedsore patient, as these sores are a clear indication of neglect by the staff should the loved one be in a nursing home or hospital. You will have the power to hold the facilities accountable for the pain caused by using the said legal rights.

Two Methods for Preventing Bedsores

Move – Typically, the patient should be moved roughly every 15 minutes in order to keep the pressure off the sore. If the frequency of movement is not possible for the patient, he/she needs to be moved every 2 hours at least. Special mattresses, special chairs and foam blocks can help keep the patient comfortable during repositioning.

Special Mattress – A pressure relief mattress can be used to alleviate the occurrence of bedsores. They are a solution that eliminates the need for constant moving and adjustment to the simple fact that they adjust to the pressure of the body exerted by the patient.

Hospitals and nursing homes have guidelines that are very specific when it comes to preventing bedsores. Therefore, if a bedsore is found on your loved one, it could be concluded that someone wasn’t doing the job very well. These kinds of practices are so unacceptable that most insurance companies refuse to pay doctors for treatment.

The reason why it’s unacceptable is simply due to the fact that it’s far easier to prevent bedsores than to treat them. With the variety of techniques and solutions such as your average pressure relief mattress, there’s no reason for bedsores to cause problems. In typical cases, these sores are simply the byproducts of negligence and carelessness.

Fortunately, it’s not just the insurance companies that are taking the stand against such behavior. Patients and their families have also stood up to the courts to hold the respective facilities accountable for the amount of suffering and the pain that was caused because of the bed sores. Some hospitals, in an effort to defend themselves, insist on claims that sometimes bedsores are unavoidable; however, these are simply untrue.

Patients confined to their beds for prolonged periods of time due to specific illnesses face multiple challenges. For starters, there is the problem of sustenance, a major issue for patients in a coma. There is also the issue of bedsores, a common condition in patients who are immobile in bed for weeks, months and years. Bedsores, also known as pressure ulcers or decubitus ulcers, are lesions on the skin caused by frequent friction and pressure resulting from lying prone in bed for prolonged periods. Left unattended, bedsores could lead to deadly infections and necrosis, a premature dying of living tissue and muscles.

For decades, the solution to minimizing this problem was to lift and turn patients at strategically timed intervals to relieve sections of the body from pressure and temperature. This however, was neither ideal nor safe for all patients, particularly those in fragile condition. This is why there has been a constant search for the solution on how to treat bed sores. This search eventually led to the development of the pressure mattress, a special type of mattress made from modern and innovative materials specifically chosen to minimize the debilitating effects of prolonged bed rest which is inherent amongst bedridden patients and the elderly.

Pressure mattresses come in two types: static mattresses and dynamic mattresses. Here is a look at the key differences between the two.

Static Pressure Relieving Mattresses

Static pressure mattresses are designed for patients who spend most of their time during the day in bed, but are still capable of moving or at the very least, being moved from time to time. These mattresses are meant to reduce effects of staying in bed on a long-term basis. The design is meant to increase patient comfort and reduce the need to turn and move around periodically to ward off the development of bedsores. Cutting-edge foam materials are used to alleviate discomfort caused by constant pressure. The foam materials themselves are designed to adjust to the body shape of a patient, an innovation that is better at mitigating pressure in hotspots such as the back, shoulders and buttocks.

Dynamic Pressure Mattresses

Dynamic pressure mattresses on the other hand, use the most advanced materials that money can buy. They are made from cutting-edge air pressure cells that are designed to constantly adjust to a patient’s body and critical care needs, eliminating the need for them to be moved and turned on an everyday basis. Most dynamic mattresses feature individual air columns that line the mattress vertically. Each air column is pressurized individually for a specific pressure level. If a section of the body requires increased pressure, simply choose cells that make contact with that part and increase the pressure.