Kang T E, Mak A F
Rehabilitation Engineering Centre, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, China.
J Rehabil Res Dev. 1998 Jan;35(1):52-60.
Pressure sores are a major problem frequently encountered by persons who use wheelchairs. Custom seat design, including contoured seating and various modular seating devices, has become an important option for pressure relief, especially when the market size is small and the variations of individual needs and requirements are large. An alternative approach in custom seating design for pressure relief is proposed in this paper. Holes were drilled in foam cushions to lower their supporting properties, particularly at the high pressure areas. This technique is evaluated systematically in this article. The scope of this study included: 1) a comparison of the foam material properties before and after such modifications, and 2) an evaluation of the static and dynamic degradation behaviors of the foams before and after modifications. It was found that the compression load (C-L) of the foam could be reduced by up to 46% using this simple drilling technique, while the material removed was only up to 28% by volume. It was also found that this approach would not significantly compromise the static and dynamic degradation behaviors of the foam; that is, such modification apparently did not dramatically shorten the lifespan of the foam material. Simple hole-drilling seems to be an effective approach to altering the supportive properties of foam cushions for pressure relief.
压疮是使用轮椅的人经常遇到的一个主要问题。定制座椅设计，包括轮廓座椅和各种模块化座椅装置，已成为缓解压力的重要选择，特别是在市场规模较小且个人需求差异较大的情况下。本文提出了一种用于缓解压力的定制座椅设计的替代方法。在泡沫坐垫上钻孔以降低其支撑性能，特别是在高压区域。本文对该技术进行了系统评估。本研究的范围包括：1）比较此类修改前后泡沫材料的性能，以及2）评估修改前后泡沫的静态和动态降解行为。结果发现，使用这种简单的钻孔技术，泡沫的压缩载荷（C-L）可降低多达46%，而去除的材料体积仅高达28%。还发现这种方法不会显著损害泡沫的静态和动态降解行为；也就是说，这种修改显然不会显著缩短泡沫材料的使用寿命。简单的钻孔似乎是改变泡沫坐垫支撑性能以缓解压力的有效方法。
