Effect of Support Surfaces on Sacral Blood Flow: A Comparative Study in Young Adults

Introduction: Pressure injuries are a common healthcare concern (Isfahani et al., 2024), particularly for patients with limited mobility. For critical care patients this prevalence is 14.3% in the US (Cox et al., 2022). Selecting an appropriate support surface may assist with mediating biomechanical determinants, an indirect force in the development of pressure injuries (Coleman et al., 2014). This study investigates the influence of standard hospital foam mattress, gel, and alternating pressure (AP) support surfaces on sacral blood flow in healthy young adults, considering individual Body Mass Index (BMI) variations.Methods:In our IRB-approved within-subjects designed study, we enrolled 30 young adults of varied BMIs (normal, overweight, or obese) to compare sacral blood perfusion in a right gluteal region of interest among three support surfaces over two-hour sessions using laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI). Initial mean blood flow measurements were established at baseline, followed by post-2-hour mean LSCI measurements.Results:A significant (p