Use of a Shear Reduction Surface for Prehospital Transport: A Randomized Crossover Study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the effectiveness of an antishear mattress overlay (ASMO) with a standard ambulance stretcher surface in reducing pressure and shear and increasing patient comfort. METHODS: In this randomized, crossover design, adults in three body mass index categories served as their own controls. Pressure/shear sensors were applied to the sacrum, ischial tuberosity, and heel. The stretcher was placed in sequential 0°, 15°, and 30° head-of-bed elevations with and without an ASMO. The ambulance traveled a closed course, achieving 30 mph, with five stops at each head-of-bed elevation. Participants rated discomfort after each series of five runs. RESULTS: Thirty individuals participated. Each participant had 30 runs (15 with an ASMO, 15 without), for a total of 900 trial runs. The peak-to-peak shear difference between support surfaces was -0.03 N, indicating that after adjustment for elevation, sensor location, and body mass index, peak shear levels at baseline (starting pause) were 0.03 N lower for the ASMO than for the standard surface ( P = .02). The peak-to-peak pressure difference between surfaces was -0.16 mm Hg, indicating that prerun peak-to-peak pressure was 0.16 mm Hg lower with the ASMO versus standard surface ( P = .002). The heel received the most pressure and shear. Discomfort score distributions differed between surfaces at 0° ( P = .004) and 30° ( P = .01); the overall score across all elevations was significantly higher with the standard surface than with the ASMO ( P = .046). CONCLUSIONS: The ASMO reduced shear, pressure, and discomfort. During transport, the ambulance team should provide additional heel offloading.

Combined negative pressure wound therapy and ultrasonic MIST therapy for open surgical wounds: a case series.

BACKGROUND: Surgical wounds are at increased risk of infection when left open to heal through secondary intention; they increase length of hospital stay, hospital costs, readmission rates, and patient morbidity. New technologies and methods of treating acute and chronic wounds are emerging. Two recent developments for the treatment of open wounds are noncontact low-frequency ultrasound (NCLFU) treatment and negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT). METHODS: This case series reports findings from 4 hospitalized patients with complex conditions who underwent colorectal surgery resulting in open abdominal wounds. The wounds were treated with NCLFU in combination with NPWT. Data were collected via retrospective review of medical records. RESULTS: After concurrent treatment with NPWT (range, 13-18 days) and NCLFU (range, 5-9 treatments), wound areas in these 4 cases were reduced by 4.5% to 37% and wound volume decreased by 17% to 62%. Granulation tissue increased in the open tissue areas in all patients. In addition, 3 of the cases received a mesh graft. CONCLUSIONS: Combination treatment with NPWT and NCLFU therapy with or without sharp debridement enhanced wound healing in the open abdominal wounds of these 4 patients.

A Retrospective, Descriptive Analysis of Hospital-acquired Deep Tissue Injuries.

Preventing, identifying, and treating deep tissue injury (DTI) remains a challenge. PURPOSE: The purpose of the current research was to describe the characteristics of DTIs and patient/care variables that may affect their development and outcomes at the time of hospital discharge. METHODS: A retrospective, descriptive, single-site cohort study of electronic medical records was conducted between October 1, 2010, and September 30, 2012, to identify common demographic, intrinsic (eg, mobility status, medical comorbidities, and incontinence), extrinsic (ie, surgical and procedural events, medical devices, head-of-bed elevation), and care and treatment factors related to outcomes of hospital-acquired DTIs; additional data points related to DTI development or descriptive of the sample (Braden Scale scores and subscale scores, hospital length of stay [LOS], intensive care unit [ICU] LOS, days from admission to DTI, time in the operating room, serum albumin levels, support surfaces/specialty beds, and DTI locations) also were retrieved. DTI healing outcomes, grouped by resolved, partial-thickness/stable, and full-thickness/unstageable, and 30 main patient/treatment variables were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis, chi-squared, and Fischer exact tests. RESULTS: One hundred, seventy-nine (179) DTIs occurred in 141 adult patients (132 in men, 47 in women; mean patient age 64 [range 19-94]). Of those patients, 110 had a history of peripheral vascular disease and 122 had hypertension. Sixty-nine (69) DTIs were documented in patients who died within 1 year of occurrence. Most common DTI sites were the coccyx (47 [26%]) and heel (42 [23%]); 41 (22%) were device-related. Median hospital LOS was 23 (range 4-258) days and median ICU LOS was 12 (range 1-173) days; 40 DTIs were identified before surgery and 120 after a diagnostic or therapeutic procedure. Data for DTI outcome groups at hospital discharge included 28 resolved, 131 partial-thickness/stable, and 20 full-thickness/unstageable; factors significantly different between outcome groups included mechanical ventilation (15/42/12; P = .01), use of a feeding tube (15/46/12; P = .02), anemia (14/30/9; P = .005), history of cerebrovascular accident (12/27/7; P = .03), hospital LOS (67/18/37.5; P <.001), ICU LOS (23/10/12; P = .03), time-to-event (13.5/8/9; P = .001), vasopressor use after DTI (13/31/11; P = .003), low-air-loss surface (10/9/3; P = .005), and device-related (14/24/4; P = .002). CONCLUSION: DTI risk factors mirrored those of other PUs, but progression to full-thickness injury was not inevitable. Early and frequent assessment and timely intervention may help prevent DTI progression.