Preventive medicine
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Preventive medicine · May 1993
ReviewEnhancing host resistance to pressure ulcers: a new approach to prevention.
Pressure ulcers are notoriously common in spinal-cord-injured patients, in patients with other neurological deficits, in malnourished and severely debilitated patients, and in the frail elderly. Prolonged localized external pressure, coupled with insensitivity to ischemia resulting from neurologic injury, has long been considered the major causal factor. Preventive efforts have focused on the relief of pressure via frequent repositioning and the use of pressure-relieving devices. ⋯ J. Biundo, Jr., Paraplegia in press). Randomized controlled trials are needed to determine the efficacy of high-voltage pulsed galvanic stimulation for preventing pressure ulcers in spinal-cord-injured persons and other groups at high risk.