Life Support Technologies Group Helps Develop Oxy-Mat™, a Therapeutic Mattress Approved by CMS for coding EO373
Tarrytown, NY (PRWEB) October 01, 2015 -- Life Support Technologies Group (LST), Tarrytown, NY partnered with Off-Loading Technologies, Inc. (OLT), Tarrytown, NY to conduct research and develop a therapeutic mattress that would prevent or manage pressure ulcers in patients. The result is Oxy-Mat™ which has now been approved by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for use in hospitals and rehabilitation centers as well as for therapeutic home use.
The prevalence, fiscal, and human costs of pressure ulcers in the U.S. are enormous: 2.5 million patients per year are affected by pressure ulcers; costs range from $9.1 - $11.6 billion per year; and 60,000 deaths per years result from pressure ulcers. (Source: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; http://www.ahrq.gov).
The use of off-loading surfaces on which patients sleep or sit is a significant way that heathcare facilities try to reduce or eliminate pressure ulcers. The purpose of any off-loading clinical surface is to take excessive pressure off of specific areas of the body to prevent pressure ulcers from developing. These mattress, or air cushions for chairs, may be powered so that the patient’s weight is automatically shifted periodically. Any person laying on a bed or sitting in a chair for prolonged time periods has their blood circulation reduced or cut-off in those areas of the body directly in contact with the bed or chair. A healthy person moves around and shifts weight to help blood circulation. For paralyzed or injured patients who cannot move unassisted or who are very limited in their movement, they cannot shift their weight to ease blood circulation. Over time, this results in pressure ulcers for the paralyzed or injured patient.
Glenn Butler, CEO of LST, said "The over-prescription of powered, off-loading mattress systems and other devices may be the largest preventable cost in Healthcare today. Our mattress evaluation and development research indicates that the majority of patients should be on lower-cost, non-powered mattress systems".
In order to help produce a cost-effective and clinically viable off-loading surface, LST compared 16 commercially-available powered, low air loss, and equalizing mattress systems. The Oxy-Mat™ therapeutic, off-loading surface was produced based on results of hundreds of tests on human volunteers, and was then further improved as a result of patient evaluations in field trials.
Glenn Butler, CEO noted, “For over 50 years, patient-mattress interface pressure has been the primary indicator for mattress selection. Our early research soon made it clear that pressure alone was not a reliable indicator of pressure ulcer risk and that tissue oxygen levels where the only real-time indicator of pressure ulcer risk or development.”
LST’s novel, patent-pending research approach is detailed in the peer-reviewed, semi-annual journal, Surgical Technology International, in an article titled Oxy-Mat™ Mattress System Development Utilizing Simultaneous Measurement of Interface Pressure and Deep-Tissue Oxygen Saturation. The journal is available in hardcopy and on-line (http://surgicaltechnology.com).
Mickey Dyevich, CEO of OLT, remarked, “The Oxy-Mat™ non-powered therapeutic support surface is fast becoming the mattress of choice for comfort, prevention, and treatment of pressure ulcers for a fraction of the cost compared to powered mattress systems.”
For more information see:
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
http://www.ahrq.gov
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
http://www.cms.gov
Surgical Technology International
http://surgicaltechnology.com
Off-Loading Technologies, Inc.
http://www.offload-usa.com
About the Life Support Technologies Group (LST)
http://www.lifesupport-USA.com
The Life Support Technologies Group (LST) is a Tarrytown, NY-based medical and life-support / life-safety engineering company specializing in Advanced Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Services to hospitals in the NY-NJ-CT region. LST has been in business for over 20 years and currently provides services to 10 hospitals; clients also include NASA and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD).
Glenn Butler, CEO
Life Support Technologies Group
(914) 333-8412
Bernie Chowdhury, Life Support Technologies Group, http://www.lifesupport-USA.com, +1 (914) 333-8412, [email protected]
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