Bed Sores

Bed-Sores, a complication of diseases in which a prolonged confinement in bed is associated with extreme prostration, and particularly with the continued maintenance of the same position, the patient always lying on the back or on one side. Bed-sores occur in situations exposed to pressure, but they very rarely develop when the patient is under the supervision of a watchful nurse. Ignorance, neglect, or want of cleanliness are their most common causes; still in certain paralytic cases acute bed-sores appear in rare instances in spite of all precautions, being then apparently due to the involvement of nerves which govern the nutrition of the skin. Change of position, when that is possible, a smooth, tightly-drawn sheet, or, if necessary, a water bed to lie upon, scrupulous cleanliness, constant watchfulness over parts exposed to pressure, with the use, if the skin becomes reddened, of air cushions, or the application of alcohol or glycerine; these are the main preventive measures. If an open sore once forms, it is high time for the case to come under skilled medical treatment.