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Important Terms to Know: Pressure Injury Prevention


November 1, 2022

At-risk patient—pressure injuries: Patients who have limitations in their daily living activities are at risk for developing pressure injuries, especially if they are exposed to pressure, shear, friction, or moisture.

Bony prominence: On an anatomical structure, any bony projection or elevation.

Braden Scale: A risk assessment tool commonly used in the United States to determine the likelihood that an adult patient will develop a pressure injury. The lower the score, the more a patient is at risk. For pediatric patients, the Braden Q Scale is used.

Norton Scale: Scale developed in the 1960s to determine pressure injury risk in adult patients. The lower the score, the more at risk the patient is for developing a pressure injury.

Offloading: The mechanical process of distributing weight and dynamic forces more evenly. Offloading can be accomplished via several methods based on the individual case, for example, using a foam prophylactic dressing, or elevating heels off a bed surface.

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Pressure injury: Localized damage to the skin and underlying soft tissue, usually over a bony prominence or related to a medical or other device. The injury can manifest as intact skin or an open ulcer and may be painful. The injury occurs because of intense and/or prolonged pressure or pressure in combination with shear. The tolerance of soft tissue for pressure and shear may also be affected by microclimate, nutrition, perfusion, comorbidities, and condition of the soft tissue.

Pressure injury, unstageable: Pressure injuries with full-thickness skin and tissue loss in which slough or eschar obscures the extent of tissue damage. If slough or eschar is removed from the wound, the injury will manifest as a stage 3 pressure injury or stage 4 pressure injury. NPIAP terminology: unstageable pressure injury, obscured full-thickness skin, and tissue loss.

Reposition: To change the position of an individual at regular intervals to redistribute pressure or increase comfort.

Shear: The force applied to body tissues when tissues move in the opposite direction. This force increases the pressure on blood vessels and reduces perfusion to the area.

Waterlow Pressure Ulcer Risk Assessment/ Prevention Policy Tool: The most frequently used pressure injury risk assessment tool in the United Kingdom. This tool includes a "Special Risks" category that can raise a patient's score. The higher the score, the higher the patient's risk of developing a pressure injury.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author, and do not represent the views of WoundSource, HMP Global, its affiliates, or subsidiary companies.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author, and do not represent the views of WoundSource, HMP Global, its affiliates, or subsidiary companies.