Incidence, contributory factors and costs of pressure sores.

Although pressure sores are an increasing problem in long-term medical care, the magnitude and costs of the complication are not well documented. In this article an investigation of the pressure sore problem in a general hospital is described. The incidence of patients with pressure sores was found to be 4,5% of the total patient population, with an additional 5,2% showing signs of skin discoloration from excessive or prolonged pressure. The majority of patients with sores were over 60 years of age, incontinent, immobile and White.