Synonyms: pressure sores, bed sores, decubitus ulcers
Pressure ulcers occur when skin and underlying tissues are placed under pressure that impairs blood supply, leading to tissue damage. Pressure ulcers may present as persistently red, blistered, broken or necrotic skin and may extend to underlying structures - eg, muscle and bone. A pressure ulcer may be caused by pressure, shear, friction or a combination of these. The cost of treating a pressure ulcer is huge and depends upon its severity. Costs increase with ulcer severity because the time to heal is longer and the incidence of complications is higher in more severe cases.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original article at https://patient.info/doctor/dermatology/pressure-ulcers-pro