Examining the clinical outcomes of a soft silicone multilayer foam dressing for exudate management in US hospitals: it is time to optimize dressing change frequency.

Background: Acute and chronic wounds in the acute hospital setting are commonly managed with soft silicone multilayer foam dressings (SSMFDs). While many SSMFDs are indicated for wear time of up to 7 days, they are often changed more frequently.

Objective: To use real-world data on dressing change practices and clinical outcomes to examine whether a built-in indicator on a proprietary SSMFD could reduce unnecessary dressing changes.

Implementation of a Pressure Injury Prevention Protocol for Intensive Care Unit Patients Undergoing Prone Positioning.

Background: Pressure injuries remain the most common hospital-acquired condition, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Patients hospitalized with COVID-19 are at especially high risk for pressure injuries, including those related to medical devices, because of their lower tissue tolerance, prolonged intubation, and common treatment with prone positioning.

Local Problem: The COVID-19 pandemic brought an increased incidence of hospital-acquired pressure injury.

Utilizing international consensus panel recommendations and a clinical decision tree to guide selection of negative pressure wound therapy.

Introduction: A variety of NPWT products have become commercially available in the last 30 years. Utilizing advanced wound therapies appropriately can improve patient outcomes and decrease health care expenditures. Due to the increasing number of available product options, Hurd and colleagues published 10 Consensus Statements and a clinical decision tree to provide guidance on how and when to use NPWT and when to transition between device types.

A Clinical Support App for routine wound management: reducing practice variation, improving clinician confidence and increasing formulary compliance.

Wounds continue to be of a global concern. Therefore, a more focussed, evidence-based approach to wound assessment and management is required. The WOUND COMPASS™ Clinical Support App (CSA) is designed to support the health care professional with wound assessment and management at the point of care.

Epidermolysis bullosa: management complexities for paediatric patients.

Unlabelled: The genetic skin condition, epidermolysis bullosa (EB) causes the skin to be fragile and blister. As a result, blisters need to be lanced and the skin needs to be dressed with specialist dressings for protection and to promote wound healing.

Method: a prospective case series and product evaluation of the Allevyn™ Gentle Border Lite dressing range was conducted, with four paediatric patients diagnosed with the following types of EB: recessive dystrophic (generalised severe), dominant dystrophic, simplex (generalised severe) and junctional (localised).

Ensuring prompt diagnosis and treatment of epidural abscess.

An epidural abscess, defined as a collection of pus between the dura mater of the spinal cord and the vertebral canal (Mosby, 2002), is a rare complication of epidural analgesia. Prompt diagnosis and treatment are essential to a good outcome. If left untreated, an epidural abscess can result in permanent paralysis and incontinence.

Assessing pain in cognitively impaired older adults.

Background: Accurate assessments of pain help healthcare professionals to identify its source and manage it appropriately. Pain in cognitively impaired older adults is difficult to assess and this can result in poor management and outcomes. In response to the vulnerability of this patient group, researchers have produced a variety of tools for pain assessment in cognitively impaired older adults.