title: Relieving the pressure in the radiology department.
abstract: Interventional radiological procedures can be complex, requiring patients, many of whom already have compromised arterial circulation, to lie immobile for significant periods. X-ray table mattresses are designed to avoid radiation attenuation, which could degrade image quality or increase patient dose. Consequently, most mattresses do not have pressure redistribution properties. Skin changes, noted after lengthy radiological procedures, would appear to indicate that this unrelieved pressure places vulnerable patients at risk of sustaining pressure damage that could potentially initiate pressure ulcer development. This article examines the biomedical basis of pressure ulcer development, and discusses the suitability of alternative support devices for radiological examinations in an apparently under-researched environment.
authors.affiliation: Queen Elizabeth Queen Mother Hospital, East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust.
authors.forename: I L
authors.initials: IL
authors.lastname: Howatson-Jones
mesh_terms: D001513:Beds / Q000592:standards; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D017770:Lifting / Q000009:adverse effects; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods / Q000451:nursing; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000379:methods; D003668:Pressure Ulcer / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D015641:Radiography, Interventional / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000451:nursing; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012867:Skin / Q000033:anatomy & histology