Pressure sores are, unfortunately, common in many nursing homes. The good news is, they are preventable and treatable with the proper care.
Elderly people with restricted mobility may develop pressure sores when they can’t move from a bed for extended periods of time. Usually, our nerves tell our bodies when we need to move if we lay in one position for too long to help us relieve pressure on a specific area of the skin.
If an elderly person is in bed and cannot move, he or she may develop a pressure ulcer in just one or two hours.
Pressure ulcers can develop from sitting in a chair or lying in a bed.
Pressure ulcers from chairs can develop faster because the direct force on the skin is greater than on a bed.