a bed with a mattress whose upper surface is perforated with thousands of holes, through which air is forced under pressure. The patient is thus supported, like a hovercraft, on a cushion of air. This type of bed is invaluable for the treatment of patients with large areas of burns.... Oxford | Concise Colour Medical Dictionary
A procedure for thoroughly washing a patient who is con?ned to bed. It helps to maintain a healthy skin, especially over pressure-points such as elbows, buttocks and heels. An invaluable preventive measure against the development of bed sores (see ULCER).... Medical Dictionary
The continued occupation of a hospital bed by a patient who is ?t to be discharged but requires further care in a nursing home or in a community setting that cannot be arranged because of lack of suitable facilities and/or funding. Bed-blocking has become a common phenomenon in the NHS, particularly in the winter.
The result is that patients who need inpatient care cannot always be admitted. The term ‘bedblockers’ is derogatory and should not be used.... Medical Dictionary
Bed bug, or Cimex lectularius, is a wingless, blood-sucking insect, parasitic on humans. It is a ?at, rusty-brown insect, 5 mm long and 3 mm wide, which has an o?ensive, never-forgotten smell and cannot ?y. The average life is 3–6 months, but it can live for a year without food. The bed bug remains hidden during the day in cracks in walls and ?oors, and in beds. It does not transmit any known disease. Eggs hatch out into larvae in 6–10 days, which become adult within about 12 weeks. A temperature of 44 °C kills the adult in an hour. Various agents have been used to disinfect premises, such as sulphur dioxide, ethylene oxide mixed with carbon dioxide, hydrogen cyanide and heavy naphtha, but insecticide is the most e?ective disinfecting agent.... Medical Dictionary
the number of hospital beds occupied by patients expressed as a percentage of the total beds available in the ward, specialty, hospital, area, or region. It may be recorded in relation to a defined point in time or more usefully for a period, when the calculation is based on bed-days. It is used with other indices (such as *admission rate) to assess the demands for hospital beds in relation to diseases, specialties, or populations and hence to gauge an appropriate balance between demand for health care and number of beds.... Oxford | Concise Colour Medical Dictionary
A term used to describe periods spent in bed. Bed rest may be a part of treatment in certain illnesses, such as rheumatic fever, and for some types of injury, such as a fractured vertebra. Prolonged bed rest carries risks such as muscle wasting, weakness, and increased risk of blood clots developing in the legs. Bed rest was once considered an essential part of the treatment of many common conditions but is now avoided whenever possible. Patients are now encouraged to be mobile as soon as possible after surgery.... BMA Medical Dictionary
Blood sucking hemipterans belonging to the genus Cimex. Not important in the transmission of disease but can cause irritating allergic response to their saliva.... Dictionary of Tropical Medicine
A container made of metal, ?bre or plastic into which a person con?ned to bed can defaecate and, in the case of a female, urinate. Men use a urinal – a ?ask-shaped container – to urinate. Hospitals have special cleaning and sterilising equipment for bedpans. They are much less used than in the past because patients are encouraged to be mobile as soon as possible, and also because bedside commodes are preferred where this is practical.... Medical Dictionary
A term used to describe a person who is unable to leave their bed due to illness or injury. People most likely to be bedridden are the very elderly, the terminally ill, and those paralysed as the result of an accident.... BMA Medical Dictionary
Breakdown and ulceration of tissues from pressure on parts of the body overlying bone in those confined to bed for long periods. Poor or obstructed circulation interferes with tissue replacement and drainage, giving place to local gangrene. Weak body health disposes: anaemia, poor nutrition or absence of a fatty barrier between skin and bone. Commences with superficial redness, turning to blue and progressing to fat and muscle necrosis. Prognosis: destruction of bone and septicaemia.
Prevention is best. Wipe over possible areas with whisky or Vodka following with Oil of St John’s Wort. Bed patients are encouraged to spend at least 2 or 3 hours out of bed daily. Many kinds of bed-care aids exist: inflatable rings, water beds and padded protection. Vitamin C deficiency exists in most cases. Treatment. Herbal antibiotics: Wild Indigo, Myrrh, Milk Thistle, Goldenseal, Echinacea, Marigold. Supportives: Comfrey, Sarsaparilla, Vitamin E.
Powders. Parts: Echinacea 2; Goldenseal 1; Liquorice 1. Dose: 750mg (three 00 capsules or half a teaspoon) thrice daily.
Tinctures. Wild Indigo 1; Echinacea 2; Goldenseal quarter. 1-2 teaspoons in water 3 times daily. Practitioner. Tincture Echinacea BHP (1983) 20ml; Tincture Goldenseal BPC (1949) 5ml; Tincture Marigold BPC (1934) 10ml. Low alcohol vodka to 100ml. Sig: 5ml (3i) tds aq. cal. AC. (Anonymous) Topical. Early stages: Comfrey poultice or ointment. Marshmallow and Slippery Elm ointment; Oil St John’s Wort, Rue tea. Fresh pulp of Aloe Vera. Later stages: Sunlight soap plaster. Official medicine at the turn of the century used Lassar’s paste or zinc and castor oil ointment which are still effective. Distilled extract of Witch Hazel. For threatened gangrene, skin breakdown with formation of slough: (1) Zinc and Castor oil ointment (or cream) plus a little powdered Myrrh. (2) Cold poultice of Comfrey powder. ... Bartrams Encyclopedia of Herbal Medicine
A development of the conventional air-beds. Their essential feature is a mattress which is alternately pressurised by a compressor to create a gentle rippling e?ect along the entire length of the mattress. This provides a continuous massaging motion which stimulates the circulation and helps to maintain the nutrition of the skin, thereby reducing the risk of bed sores (see ULCER – Decubitus ulcer).... Medical Dictionary
A bed with a water-?lled mattress can help prevent bed sores (see ULCER – Decubitus ulcer) in patients con?ned to bed for more than a few days. Its ?exibility provides uniform support for the whole body. Air beds are now more often used: they are light and more comfortable and the modern version, called a ripple bed, has a little motor that ?lls and empties tubes in the mattress. The patient’s circulation is stimulated and pressure is regularly changed on susceptible parts of the body – elbows, buttocks and heels – thus reducing the likelihood of pressure sores developing, particularly in the elderly.... Medical Dictionary
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