Pennsylvania state trooper Matt Uram was talking with his wife at a July Fourth party in 2009 when a misjudged spray of gasoline burst through a nearby bonfire and set him alight. Flames covered the entire right side of his body, and after he fell to the ground to smother them, his wife beat his head with her bare hands to put out his burning hair. It was only on the way to the ER, as the shock and adrenaline began to wear off, that the pain set in. “It was intense,” he says. “If you can imagine what pins and needles feel like, then replace those needles with matches.” (more…)
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Meeting the nutritional needs of elderly cancer patients
Although it is described as “one of society’s greatest achievements,” with the aging population, cancer incidence is expected to accelerate rapidly, as 50% of cancer occurs within this age group.(1)
Nutrition therapy is a crucial component of cancer care. Early and continuous nutrition management is necessary to avoid malnutrition, as this is associated with poor clinical outcomes.(2) Often, the elderly already face chronic comorbid conditions, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, kidney disease, bone disease and arthritis, further complicating their care.(3) (more…)
Read MoreFlexible Materials Innovations Advances Wound Care
The cutting-edge of wound care is a progressively flexible one, where textiles, foams, and films are applied to wound management technology with the goal of synergistic physiological function. These innately intuitive materials underpin the emerging medical solutions that practitioners and their patients are finding more effective than traditional wound care and closure methods. With an aging population more frequently seeking medical care and a surge in diabetes diagnoses, market analysts predict a continuing rise in demand for advanced wound care management products, fueling an annual industry growth rate of 6.4% over the next five years. (more…)
Read MoreNecrotizing Fasciitis: Pearls & Pitfalls
A 39-year-old woman presents to the ED with leg pain and fever. She initially noted redness and pain above her knee 2 weeks ago and was evaluated at an outside hospital. She completed a 10-day course of oral antibiotics for cellulitis. Over the last two days, she has had progressive leg swelling of her entire right thigh. The pain is now so severe that she is having difficulty walking. Her past medical history is negative for diabetes mellitus, chronic liver disease, or alcohol and IV drug use.
On exam, she is febrile to 102.7 F, heart rate is 96 bpm, and blood pressure is 112/65. She has a 12 cm area of faint erythema on her right thigh and tenderness to palpation of her entire right leg with diffuse edema. There is no ecchymosis or bullae formation. (more…)
Read MoreFish Skin for Human Wounds: Iceland’s Pioneering Treatment
The FDA-approved skin substitute reduces inflammation and transforms chronic wounds into acute injuries.
Six hours north of Reykjavik, along a narrow road tracing windswept fjords, is the Icelandic town of Isafjordur, home of 3,000 people and the midnight sun. On a blustery May afternoon, snow still fills the couloirs that loom over the docks, where the Pall Palsson, a 583-ton trawler, has just returned from a three-day trip. Below the rust-spotted deck, neat boxes are packed with freshly caught fish and ice. “If you take all the skins from that trawler,” says Fertram Sigurjonsson, the chairman and chief executive officer of Kerecis Ltd., gesturing over the catch, “we would be able to treat one in five wounds in the world.” (more…)
Read MoreSmart bandage uses nanosensors to track how a wound is healing
Bandages are intended to keep a dressing secure and clean in order to reduce healing time and infection rate. However, they may be about to get a new use-case, courtesy of a project from the United Kingdom’s Swansea University Institute of Life Science.
What researchers there have been working on is a new smart bandage capable of tracking how a wound is healing and sending that data back to doctors, via 5G technology. To do this it would employ tiny “nanosensors” able to fit comfortably within the fabric of regular bandages. (more…)
Read MoreAtrium Medical Center division earns award for clinical excellence
MIDDLETOWNThe Wound Care Center and Hyperbaric Services at Atrium Medical Center recently was recognized with a national award for clinical excellence.
The Center of Distinction Award was presented by Healogics, the nation’s leading and largest wound care management company. The center was also honored with the Healogics President’s Circle Award.
The awards recognize outstanding clinical outcomes for 12 consecutive months, including patient satisfaction higher than 92 percent, and a wound healing rate of at least 91 percent in less than 31 median days. (more…)
Read MoreSmart bandages which tell doctor how wound is healing to begin trials
Smart bandages which can detect how well a wound is healing and send a progress report to the doctor will be trialled within the next year, scientists have said. The dressings are fitted with tiny sensors which can pick up blood clotting, or spot infections, and wirelessly send data back to a clinician. Swansea University, which is hoping to trial the bandages within 12 months, said the new technology could offer a personalised approach to medicine.
Currently patients with wounds are advised to return to the doctor in a certain amount of time. But each case may need a longer time to heal, or may have become infected before the visit. (more…)
Read MoreLaughlin Center Named Wound Care Center Of The Year
Laughlin Center for Wound Care and Hyperbarics has been honored as the Wound Care Center of the Year as well as recognized with a national award for continued excellence in wound healing by Healogics Inc., a wound care management company.
Leaders, physicians and clinicians from Laughlin Center for Wound Care and Hyperbarics recently gathered to celebrate the center’s receipt of the Robert A. Warriner III Center of Excellence award, according to a news release.
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Control your claims: Pressure ulcer/wound care management
One of many dreaded tags from a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Survey is F-Tag 314 — Pressure ulcers.
CMS writes, “Each resident must receive and the facility must provide the necessary care and services to attain or maintain the highest practicable physical, mental, and psychosocial well-being, in accordance with the comprehensive assessment and plan of care.” (more…)
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