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Quantifying and Visualizing the Pressure Distribution of In-Bed Positions to Reduce Pressure Injury Risk
Tim M N van Helden1, Sarah L Versnel, Lisa Arkes
1Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Insights
Repositioning patients is key to preventing pressure injuries (PIs). This study used a pressure mat to show how different bed positions affect pressure distribution, aiding nurse education on PI prevention strategies.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Nursing Science
- Clinical Practice
Background:
- Pressure injuries (PIs) represent a significant healthcare challenge.
- Effective patient repositioning is vital for mitigating PI risk.
- Optimal bed positioning strategies for PI prevention remain unclear to healthcare staff.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify and visualize the impact of various bed settings and body positions on pressure distribution.
- To create educational graphics for healthcare staff on pressure injury risk reduction.
- To inform best practices for patient repositioning to prevent pressure injuries.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a pressure-detecting mat to assess pressure distribution in different in-bed positions.
- Included healthy volunteers to simulate patient scenarios on two hospital mattresses.
- Quantitatively analyzed and visualized pressure data across various lying and sitting postures.
Main Results:
- Elevating the head of the bed (HOB) from 0° to 45° significantly increased sacral pressure.
- Raising legs to semi-Fowler position reduced sacral pressure when sitting at a 30° HOB angle.
- Lateral rotation increased pressure on the greater trochanter, particularly between 30° and 60° rotation.
Conclusions:
- Pressure maps and peak pressure data offer valuable insights for educating nurses on pressure redistribution.
- Visual aids derived from pressure mapping can reinforce adherence to international guidelines for PI prevention.
- Understanding pressure distribution in different positions supports evidence-based nursing care for pressure injury prevention.
Objective:
Pressure injuries (PIs) are a major health care issue, and timely and correct repositioning of patients at risk for PIs is crucial in lowering the PI risk. However, the ideal bed positions and the impact on the PI risk are often unclear to health care staff. Therefore, the authors used a pressure-detecting mat to quantify and visualize the effects of bed settings and body position on the pressure distribution to provide insightful graphics for educating health care staff.
Methods:
The authors quantitatively assessed and visualized the pressure distribution of different in-bed lying and sitting positions with a pressure-measuring mat on 2 different hospital mattresses by including healthy volunteers.
Results:
Differences between positions were visualized by the pressure mat. The median pressure on the sacrum increased by 30% to 35% when the head of bed (HOB) angle was raised from 0° to 30° and further increased 17% to 27% when the HOB angle was raised from 30° to 45°. Pressure on sacrum, when sitting with an HOB angle of 30°, reduced by 19% to 35% when raising the legs to semi-Fowler position. During lateral rotation, median pressure on the greater trochanter increased by 27% to 35% when rotating from 30° to 60°. Pressures are reported in a range between the 2 different mattresses.
Conclusions:
Pressure maps and peak pressure values of the different bed positions can help educate nurses on how body position changes the pressure distribution and provides additional support to follow the international guideline on PI prevention.
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