Finite Element Tissue Strains Computation to Evaluate the Mechanical Protection Provided by a New Bilayer Dressing for Heel Pressure Injuries

Abstract

ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE Pressure injuries (PIs) result in an extended duration of care and increased risks of complications for patients. When treating a PI, the aim is to hinder further PI development and speed up the healing time. Urgo RID recently developed a new bilayer dressing to improve the healing of stages 2 and 3 heel PIs. This study aims to numerically investigate the efficiency of this new bilayer dressing to reduce strains around the PI site. METHODS The researchers designed three finite element models based on the same heel data set to compare the Green-Lagrange compressive and maximal shear strains in models without a PI, with a stage 2 PI, and with a stage 3 PI. Simulations with and without the dressing were computed. Analysis of the results was performed in terms of strain clusters, defined as volumes of tissues with high shear and compressive strains. RESULTS Decreases in the peak and mean values of strains were low in all three models, between 0% and 20%. However, reduction of the strain cluster volumes was high and ranged from 55% to 68%. CONCLUSIONS The cluster analysis enables the robust quantitative comparison of finite element analysis. Results suggest that use of the new bilayer dressing may reduce strain around the PI site and that this dressing could also be used in a prophylactic manner. Results should be extended to a larger cohort of participants.