What type of bed/matress?

[Meg1]

My brother is C5/C6, four months post about to be released from Kessler. He had a sore on his butt for about 5 weeks that prompted his Dr. to have him a top of the line gel/sand-filled/air mattress. It has been heaven for him. He sleeps really well and I supposed it has enabled the sore to heal.

Three nights ago it was taken away to start testing him on other mattresses. It took two incredibly uncomfortable nights for him to realize he hated the bed that moved, basically one side dropped several inches for 30 minutes at at time, his sore came back withing two days also.

He is back in the Lexus of all beds and had a great night sleep and I guess the sore looks better today.

What type of beds do people use? Are there any beds that can be prescribed? The thought of having to get up every two hours and turn him is making my parents sick - they are both 60 years old and tired.

thanks....

[SCI-Nurse]

Can he learn to sleep on his stomach with his bony areas properly bridged? If so, he can go all night in this position. It keeps the weight off his butt, reduces spasticity, decreases the risk of hip and knee contractures, and is good for his kidneys and lungs.

If you are talking about a Clinitron bed, this is overkill for prevention and I know of no insurance that would cover the costs for home under these circumstances. Purchase is over $30,000...you can get a lot of attendant care for this.

He should be moved from the Clinitron to a low air loss mattress first before going to a regular pressure reducing mattress. A TxCair, or Microair 3500S, or a TurnQ would be an appropriate first step.

Keep in mind though that most pressure ulcers in people with SCI are sitting sores. If your brothers sores are on his ischiums, it is unlikely that the mattress is to blame for his new breakdown.

(KLD)

[Clipper]

I slept on a waterbed for many years post-injury. But waterbeds are not very good for support, independent functioning or transfers. I now sleep on a Select Comfort air bed. I don't recall what kind of beds I used in rehab. Fortunately, knock on wood, I've had very few skin issues.

[mjhopper]

I also sleep on a Select Comfort bed... it's great.. my husband and I sleep on a king with individual remote controls. I can adjust the bed to soft when my back bothers me. I add more air when I get up to transfer into my wheelchair. I highly recommend it to SCI patients.. We bought ours at Bed Bath and Beyond.

MJ Hopper

[marmalady]

Matt has the Microair since he came home (5 years now), and it has worked well for him.

Re turning every two hours, we did the same for Matt at the beginning, then slowly lengthened out the time, so that now he can go a good 4-5 hours without turning, if he is on his side or back. He also sleeps on his stomach with positioning as KLD mentioned, and goes all night without turning.

His needs will change over time the longer he is home, and you need to remember that what you're seeing now is not the way it's going to be 'forever'! [img]/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif[/img]

_____________
Tough times don't last - tough people do.

[lilsister]

bookie, sorry, couldn't resist! my brother is just a little over three years post, had grade 4 ulcer on coccyx while in hospital, so i was nervous about mattress. he came home to an air mattress that was good for a while, it was a rental from medical supply place. once his skin was in good repair, i got him a gel matress- for two reasons,firmer surface to turn himself, and dress, rom, etc. also it doesn't require a motor, which is quieter, less to maintain. he now (last two years) only needs to be turned every 5-6 hours. we position on either side. this way his skin has never shown redness, he gets to sleep, i get to sleep! he almost never uses bed with head of bed up (hospital bed) because afraid of pressure on coccyx, ishials. the gel pad goes over regular mattress and just gets a quick kneading when bed is made in the morning. they won't last forever, but less money than air mattress. debra

[lilsister]

sorry, forgot to mention that i got a trapeze for the bed also. it's been really helpful for us. jim hooks his wrists over the bar to do pull-ups and facilatate dressing. and can lift upper body when being repositioned, it helps alot. and be sure to get as much supplies ordered before he leaves the hospital as you can, because insurance won't question it as much from an inpatient status. it's a real wakeup call once they get home and insurance refuses to pay. stock up on heel protection booties, ted sock, catheters, chux, everything. it is alwaysenough commotion when first coming home, withoput running out of supplies for a while.

[Meg1]

Thanks to all who replied. I have given the list to my mother and she will talk to his OT/PT on Monday. He did try to TurnQ and hated it.

Can I ask what level of injury do those who replied have?

[lilsister]

my brother jim, is c 5-6. remember too that many times you can rent various mattresses from medical supply. his needs will evolve as he stabilizes and progresses. many people have a large amount of equipment in storage after it is no longer needed, and they can't recoup that money for other equipment they want or need. it's really hard to make these decisions, especially in the rehab stage. good luck to you all. debra

[tegdirb]

I have a full sealy posturepedic...I sleep on one side all night and have never had a pressure sore ...when I first got home, my mom turned me every two hrs, but I dont think its neccesary...maybe every 4. hospitable beds are very hard and someone has to be turned every 2 hrs on them. I go all night most of the time, but I turn myself if I get uncomfortable. almost thought a hospitable bed was needed while I was at rehab, but am glad I didnt get one. its more comfortable

Even if your body cannot move, you can still think and meditate ~Dalai Lama~

[tegdirb]

oh, btw im a c6-7 complete

Even if your body cannot move, you can still think and meditate ~Dalai Lama~

[Mike C]

I use an anti-decubitus mattress that is made up of square, foam cubes, 1 meter wide and 2 meters long. No pressure sores. I weigh over 100 kilo, and 1,92 m.

"So I have stayed as I am, without regret, seperated from the normal human condition." Guy Sajer

[Andy]

Originally posted by bridget:

I have a full sealy posturepedic...I sleep on one side all night and have never had a pressure sore ... hospitable beds are very hard and someone has to be turned every 2 hrs on them. ~

I second that. When I was looking at the beds they had in the hospital and rehab I went to, all they were were a thin pad on a steel slab, no wonder they have pressure sore issues almost universally in hospitals. I do the commercial matress route also, some sort of king size Sealy or Serta (forget which), and am on my side for at least 4 hours when sleeping without moving and no problems. The only pressure sore I had was a tailbone sore, that started when the hospital left me on a back board for at least 8 hours from what I can figure happened immediately after my accident, and it went downhill to the beginnings of a stage 3 sore from there until I finally got to rehab and they started addressing that problem there.

[Stiggy]

I have a posturepedic pellow top bed and on top of my bed I have a Dyna Care Air Alternating Pressure System by Grant.Its a great system to prevent pressure ulcers. Stiggy [img]/forum/images/smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

"The Meaning of things lies not in things themselves,but in our attitude towards them"

[andrew]

A ripple air mattress with cells that alternate every 10 minutes. No problems in 13 years. Very quiet pump. Cost was AUS$1800.
Andrew[img]/forum/images/smilies/smile.gif[/img]

Welcome to the party pal!
Bruce Willis, Diehard