Picking
the Best Wheel Chair Cushion
Wheel
chair cushion...
Paraplegics
and quadriplegics are plagued by pressure sores
(decubitus ulcers) because of the loss of feeling
and mobility in the lower body.
Most
often, the confinement to bed after sugery degrades
the health of the patient, beginning a downward
health spiral. Although several wheel chair cushion
(s) exist that delay the formation of sores, currently
there is no clinically tested product on the market
that prevents their formation.
Care
for pressure sores from wheel chair cushion (s)
in general, is a
major expense, estimated at $3-5 billion a year
in the US.
People
who use a wheelchair for more than eight years
have a better than 80% chance of developing at
least one pressure sore.
To
address the problem of pressure sore formation
from sitting on a wheel chair cushion, Sandia
National Laboratories went about the task to design
and build a seat cushion to help prevent pressure
sores.
This
effort improved on the older versions and brought
all components within the wheel chair cushion,
improving reliability and safety, reducing power
requirements, and improving battery performance.
The
prototype wheelchair cushion was FDA approved
after clinical testing at a VA hospital.
During
clinical testing, patients with active ulcers
sat on the prototype wheel chair
cushions for up to eight hours per day and their
sores healed.
Future
potential applications extend past the prevention
of pressure sores to reduction of fatigue in professions
that require long periods of sitting, such as
truck driving and even office work.
