How To Treat A Bedsore That Won’T Heal

Bedsores affect hundreds of thousands of nursing home residents each year. They most often form when nursing home staff fails to regularly move or turn residents who are confined to their beds.When left undiscovered or untreated, bedsores can develop into severe wounds that require aggressive treatment.Below, we discuss how debridement may be necessary in order to treat a bedsore that has advanced into a later stage.

When is Debridement Necessary?

Bedsores have four stages of development. While Stage I and II bedsores can usually heal within weeks to months with consistent care of the wound, Stage III and IV bedsores are much more difficult to treat. This is because, at this point, the bedsore has cut into the deeper layers of skin, tissue, and muscle and, as such, requires more aggressive treatment in order to heal.

Debridement is one such form of treatment. Debridement involves the removal of damaged tissue or foreign objects from a wound. It’s accomplished with a variety of methods, including the following:

Surgical debridement: This method involves cutting away dead tissues.
Mechanical debridement: This method may use a pressurized irrigation device or specialized dressings to loosen and remove wound debris.
Autolytic debridement: This method takes advantage of the body’s natural process of recruiting enzymes to break down dead tissue. It can be enhanced with an appropriate dressing that keeps the wound moist and clean.
Enzymatic debridement: This method uses chemical enzymes and appropriate dressings to break down dead tissues.

Did Your Relative Suffer a Serious Bedsore in Their Nursing Home? Contact Us Today

Although the aforementioned treatments can help heal bedsores that have progressed into a later stage, the fact of the matter is that bedsores should never develop in the first place. When nursing home residents receive proper care and attention from staff, it is very unlikely that a bedsore will develop.

If one of your loved ones suffered a serious bedsore while in the care of a nursing home, our Baltimore nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys are here to help you and your loved one obtain justice.

Contact Brown & Barron, LLC today at (410) 698-1717 to schedule a free consultation with our team.