New international clinical practice guideline for pressure ulcer prevention and treatment
9 Medi 2014
The School's Dr Ray Samuriwo was one of wound healing experts from across the world that were involved in updating the international guidelines for pressure ulcer prevention and treatment.
The Prevention and Treatment of Pressure Ulcers: Clinical Practice Guideline is the result of a collaborative effort among the
- National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (NPUAP),
- European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP), and the
- Pan Pacific Pressure Injury Alliance (PPPIA), consisting of the:
The Prevention and Treatment of Pressure Ulcers: Clinical Practice Guideline was developed using a rigorous scientific methodology to appraise available research and make 575 evidence-based recommendations. In this second edition, a consensus voting process (GRADE) was used to assign strengths of recommendation that indicate the extent to which one can be confident that adherence to a recommendation will do more good than harm, intended to assist the health professional to prioritize interventions.
This second edition of the guideline combines prevention and treatment recommendations in one expanded guideline. This edition includes newly added sections on emerging fields of interest including:
- prevention and treatment of bio-films,
- prophylactic dressings,
- micro-climate control,
- medical-device related pressure ulcers,
- prevention and management of heel pressure ulcers and,
- low friction fabrics.
The guideline includes updated recommendations and/or research summaries for the all key pressure ulcer related topics. The guideline also includes the NPUAP/EPUAP International Pressure Ulcer Classification system, complete with full Category/Stage descriptions and illustrative photography. The document was launched at the EPUAP conference in Stockholm and is available for purchase at http://internationalguideline.com/ .