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Understanding the association between pressure ulcers and sitting in adults: what does it mean for all of us?

Understanding the association between pressure ulcers and sitting in adults: what does it mean for all of us?
Understanding the association between pressure ulcers and sitting in adults: what does it mean for all of us?

This third version of the seating guidelines aims to deliver a practical guide, using the most up to date research and evidence on pressure ulcer prevention and management. This guide can be applied to adults who remain seated for extended periods of time across health and social care settings. In the UK, over 700,000 patients are affected by pressure ulcers each year; 180,000 of those are newly acquired and their treatment is estimated to cost the NHS £3.8 million every day. Therefore, guidelines that have been written for people living or working in health and social care are essential. Within the guidelines the authors explore how and where pressure ulcers develop when seated, the potential risk factors, the best possible seated position, ideal seating assessment, and who might be involved and what interventions can one expect after a seating assessment. The guidelines then go on to examine cushion and static chair selection, cushion covers, wheelchairs, and the use of tilt, recline, and elevating leg rests. Finally there is an examination of self-help strategies to prevent pressure ulcers, the key outcomes for those who remain seated for long periods and standards for procuring and testing cushions and static chairs.

Pressure injury, Pressure redistribution, Pressure ulcers, Prevention, Seating
0965-206X
Stephens, M.
Bartley, C.A.
ff1042a5-7db3-4d34-b0c3-29e685771a5c
Chester Bessell, D.S.
755bca12-b856-4fc4-a534-bdf988aedd06
Greenwood, C.
ec828785-8e4d-4b5d-81cf-f5b82f54c780
Marshall, A.
Neill, S.
b0000864-9bee-4122-b298-a1feedb4a239
Rooney, S.
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Rose, S.
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Scattergood, S.A.
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Worsley, P.R.
6d33aee3-ef43-468d-aef6-86d190de6756
Stephens, M.
Bartley, C.A.
ff1042a5-7db3-4d34-b0c3-29e685771a5c
Chester Bessell, D.S.
755bca12-b856-4fc4-a534-bdf988aedd06
Greenwood, C.
ec828785-8e4d-4b5d-81cf-f5b82f54c780
Marshall, A.
Neill, S.
b0000864-9bee-4122-b298-a1feedb4a239
Rooney, S.
14ca5053-3bb2-4bfd-bd04-611cd5b11d5b
Rose, S.
232c2464-efc4-4b5b-a199-4f554a33b3c2
Scattergood, S.A.
4a83e152-db22-4547-81ad-4c95d14f649f
Worsley, P.R.
6d33aee3-ef43-468d-aef6-86d190de6756

Stephens, M., Bartley, C.A., Chester Bessell, D.S., Greenwood, C., Marshall, A., Neill, S., Rooney, S., Rose, S., Scattergood, S.A. and Worsley, P.R. (2025) Understanding the association between pressure ulcers and sitting in adults: what does it mean for all of us? Journal of Tissue Viability, [100937]. (doi:10.1016/j.jtv.2025.100937).

Record type: Article

Abstract

This third version of the seating guidelines aims to deliver a practical guide, using the most up to date research and evidence on pressure ulcer prevention and management. This guide can be applied to adults who remain seated for extended periods of time across health and social care settings. In the UK, over 700,000 patients are affected by pressure ulcers each year; 180,000 of those are newly acquired and their treatment is estimated to cost the NHS £3.8 million every day. Therefore, guidelines that have been written for people living or working in health and social care are essential. Within the guidelines the authors explore how and where pressure ulcers develop when seated, the potential risk factors, the best possible seated position, ideal seating assessment, and who might be involved and what interventions can one expect after a seating assessment. The guidelines then go on to examine cushion and static chair selection, cushion covers, wheelchairs, and the use of tilt, recline, and elevating leg rests. Finally there is an examination of self-help strategies to prevent pressure ulcers, the key outcomes for those who remain seated for long periods and standards for procuring and testing cushions and static chairs.

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Accepted/In Press date: 2 July 2025
e-pub ahead of print date: 29 July 2025
Keywords: Pressure injury, Pressure redistribution, Pressure ulcers, Prevention, Seating

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 505817
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/505817
ISSN: 0965-206X
PURE UUID: acae02dc-cee2-43c4-ae7f-5704670a1d35
ORCID for P.R. Worsley: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0003-0145-5042

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Date deposited: 20 Oct 2025 16:46
Last modified: 21 Oct 2025 01:43

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Contributors

Author: M. Stephens
Author: C.A. Bartley
Author: D.S. Chester Bessell
Author: C. Greenwood
Author: A. Marshall
Author: S. Neill
Author: S. Rooney
Author: S. Rose
Author: S.A. Scattergood
Author: P.R. Worsley ORCID iD

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