Pressure ulcers represent an ongoing challenge, particularly in immobile patients, that must be met by all health professionals. Extrinsic influential factors involved in the development of pressure ulcers include local shear forces, skin friction, moisture, and temperature for a patient in bed.
Objectives: Based on the relationship between pressure ulcers and skin temperature, we sought to study the influence of different bed support surface covers on skin temperature. The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of support surface materials and their effects on skin temperature at high risk areas of the body known to develop pressure ulcers. A quasi-experimental study with a non-probability sampling was used. A total of 31 subjects (14 males and 17 females) between 19 and 29 years old participated in this study.
Methods: The same standard foam bed cushion was used and three different types of surface protectors (also known as ticking) were chosen for comparison: no cover, cotton, or plastic. Skin temperature measurements were obtained from areas of high risk for developing pressure ulcers: sacrum, right and left scapula, right and left elbow, and right and left calcaneus.
Results: Upon analysis of the protective effect of different support surface coverings on the local skin temperature, we observed that temperatures were lower in all risk areas that had no support surface protector and were greater when the surfaces were in contact with protector material, with increases up to 2.13°C.
Conclusions: The type of support surface protector material greatly influences skin temperature depending on the specific area of the body in contact with the surface. The protective plastic that is currently used in hospitals may increase the risk of skin lesions. Simple changes in practices could help minimize the negative impact that plastic protectors contribute to the skin. Regardless, the surface area should be covered with protective covers that do not produce an increase in local temperature and hygienically maintain their integrity.