Alternating-pressure mattress design could reduce risk of bed sores

A team of engineers at the University of California, Los Angeles, working with a colleague from K Medical LLC, has developed a pressurized mattress that reduces the likelihood of developing bed sores for bedbound patients. In their paper published in the journal Science Robotics, the group describes how they developed their new mattress and how it can be used to help patients.

Patients who are confined to a bed for a long period of time tend to develop pressure ulcers, known more commonly as bed sores. For some patients, they are a temporary annoyance; for others, particularly those who remain bedbound for long periods of time or who are unconscious, they can lead to deadly infections.

Over the years, researchers have attempted to develop a mattress that would prevent bed sore development, but thus far, they have proved to be disappointing. In this new study, the team in California developed a mattress that they claim can solve the problem.

The reason bed sores develop is that as parts of the body apply pressure to the bed due to body weight, blood flow is cut off, leading to death of the tissue. The obvious solution is to move a patient into different positions periodically, but prior research has shown that these efforts are costly and therefore are not carried out often enough to be effective. So the researchers designed a mattress that changes the pressure points between the mattress and body points automatically on a regular basis.

The team started by building a bed with over 1,200 small rams that could be lifted or lowered independently across the surface of the bed and then using a life-like dummy to test approaches to reducing pressure periodically. That led to the creation of a mattress covered with moving panels. The panels were made in sections, each of which holds a mechanism that moves back and forth in conjunction with the other panels.

The result is a mattress that moves back and forth on demand. As it does so, the top parts of the panels change shape slightly to change the pressure exerted by the body above. Springs make shifting the mattress back and forth easier, and motors allow it to work automatically. The moving panels are covered with a foam top for comfort.

Testing of the mattress with a special dummy showed it reduced pressure points enough to potentially prevent the development of bed sores. Human testing is required before the team will know if their mattress works as they have hoped.

© 2025 Science X Network

A team of engineers at the University of California, Los Angeles, working with a colleague from K Medical LLC, has developed a pressurized mattress that reduces the likelihood of developing bed sores for bedbound patients. In their paper published in the journal Science Robotics, the group describes how they developed their new mattress and how it can be used to help patients.

Patients who are confined to a bed for a long period of time tend to develop pressure ulcers, known more commonly as bed sores. For some patients, they are a temporary annoyance; for others, particularly those who remain bedbound for long periods of time or who are unconscious, they can lead to deadly infections.

Over the years, researchers have attempted to develop a mattress that would prevent bed sore development, but thus far, they have proved to be disappointing. In this new study, the team in California developed a mattress that they claim can solve the problem.

The reason bed sores develop is that as parts of the body apply pressure to the bed due to body weight, blood flow is cut off, leading to death of the tissue. The obvious solution is to move a patient into different positions periodically, but prior research has shown that these efforts are costly and therefore are not carried out often enough to be effective. So the researchers designed a mattress that changes the pressure points between the mattress and body points automatically on a regular basis.

The team started by building a bed with over 1,200 small rams that could be lifted or lowered independently across the surface of the bed and then using a life-like dummy to test approaches to reducing pressure periodically. That led to the creation of a mattress covered with moving panels. The panels were made in sections, each of which holds a mechanism that moves back and forth in conjunction with the other panels.

The result is a mattress that moves back and forth on demand. As it does so, the top parts of the panels change shape slightly to change the pressure exerted by the body above. Springs make shifting the mattress back and forth easier, and motors allow it to work automatically. The moving panels are covered with a foam top for comfort.

Testing of the mattress with a special dummy showed it reduced pressure points enough to potentially prevent the development of bed sores. Human testing is required before the team will know if their mattress works as they have hoped.

© 2025 Science X Network