How Pressure Ulcers (Bedsores) Can Lead to Fatal Infections

Bedsores, also called pressure ulcers or pressure sores, are an unfortunately common cause of injury and illness in elderly nursing home residents as well as in bedridden or wheelchair-bound patients. They are more common in the elderly due to the age-related degeneration of skin and muscle tissue. When an ill or bed-bound individual cannot change positions and caregivers fail to sufficiently address the problem by assisting with positional changes, the unrelieved pressure points cause a lack of blood and oxygen flow to the compressed area, resulting in cell death and tissue damage. 

Tragically, when a pressure ulcer isn’t promptly addressed with proper medical care to prevent infection and promote healing, the result can be infection, the spread of infection to the bloodstream, and fatal sepsis. A Phoenix medical malpractice lawyer can evaluate whether negligent care contributed to a preventable injury or wrongful death and help families seek justice.

What are the Stages of Bedsores?

Bedsores are preventable with sufficient care to relieve pressure. When an individual with compromised mobility remains in one position for a long period of time, they may develop pressure ulcers. These most commonly occur on the bottom, hips, back of the legs, shoulders, and sometimes on the back of the head. They are most common in individuals with fragile skin,those who are immunocompromised, or both. Bedsores progress as follows:

• In stage 1, bedsores begin to appear as a reddened patch of skin that feels tender or itchy, and may be warm to the touch. On dark skin, the spot may appear blue or purple. 
• In stage 2, the bedsore becomes painful and develops a blister on the reddened or darkened portion of the skin, breaking the skin’s surface.
• In stage 3, bedsores form open wounds resembling a crater that opens below the skin’s surface, exposing underlying fat and muscle. At this stage, they are extremely painful and may include redness and inflammation in the surrounding tissue.
• In stage 4, the bedsore becomes a large, open wound, exposing the underlying muscle to the depth of the bone. Stage 4 bedsores are excruciatingly painful.

Bedsores often become infected once they develop open wounds in stage two. Without prompt action to clean, debride, and cover an open bedsore, infection develops quickly, particularly in individuals with poor hygiene care or those who suffer from incontinence.

If bedsores reach stage 4 and aren’t adequately treated with surgical intervention and antibiotic therapy, they sometimes lead to life-threatening sepsis. Making the treatment of bedsores more challenging, many nursing home residents and bedridden patients have multiple bedsores, often at various stages.

What Is Sepsis?

Sepsis was once known as blood poisoning, but more recent science reveals that it’s not poisoning from an infection seeping into the blood, but instead, it’s a deadly autoimmune reaction to infection. When the body identifies a serious source of infection, it releases natural chemicals known as cytokines into the bloodstream to fight it. In some cases, this triggers an overwhelming cascade of cytokines known as a cytokine storm, resulting in massive inflammation rather than the beneficial, mild inflammation that helps fight disease. A cytokine storm becomes sepsis when the inflammation begins killing healthy cells in the organs.

Without prompt, aggressive treatment with IV antibiotics, sepsis causes organ failure in the kidneys, heart, and brain, eventually causing death.

How Common Is Sepsis Death From Infected Pressure Ulcers?

Medical research studies show that pressure ulcers are responsible for thousands of sepsis deaths each year, with nearly 80% of the deaths occurring to those over the age of 75. Bedsore complications cause death in about 60,000 people each year. Alarmingly, 50% of nursing home residents in the study who died from pressure sore complications died within six weeks of the pressure sore’s appearance. There is a 75% mortality rate for nursing home residents who develop infected pressure sores.

What Conditions Lead to Infected Bedsores and Fatal Infections?

Healthy individuals rarely develop bedsores, even if they become temporarily bedridden due to an injury. Unfortunately, as elderly individuals experience the loss of elasticity in their skin and muscles, they are more prone to pressure ulcers when unable to change their position due to other medical problems associated with aging. At the same time, common medical conditions in the elderly increase an individual’s susceptibility to bedsores. These contributing conditions include the following:

• Diabetes, due to decreased blood circulation and cell oxygenation, which impedes the healing ability
• Kidney failure
• Peripheral vascular disease, which decreases blood flow to the extremities
• Incontinence, which causes skin degeneration due to frequent, prolonged exposure to dampness and bacteria
• Neurological disorders or paralysis may impede or prevent an affected individual’s ability to change their position
• Malnutrition can weaken the skin’s elasticity and resilience, resulting in delayed healing
• Cancer, which weakens the immune system, making it more difficult for wounds to heal

When skin becomes more fragile, it becomes more susceptible to injury from pressure, while a reduced healing ability can cause prolonged open wounds, which are more likely to become infected.

Liability for Bedsore Infection Deaths

When an individual is ill, immobile, or bedridden due to age-related medical conditions, they depend on skilled, high-quality care that meets their medical needs and preserves their human dignity. This includes the prevention of bedsores through frequent positional changes, good hygiene conditions, and adequate nutrition and hydration. Unfortunately, overwhelmed nursing home staff, negligent caregivers, and the lack of preventative protocol enforcement result in bedsores with an escalated risk of fatal infections.

Caregivers also have a legal duty to provide prompt medical treatment for bedsores discovered in stage 1 to prevent the development of advanced disease and a heightened risk of sepsis. When caregivers violate this duty of care, they are liable for damages if bedsores lead to fatal infections and wrongful death.

Wrongful Death Claims for Fatal Pressure Ulcer Infections 

When a death was preventable with reasonable care, it’s a wrongful death under Arizona law. Those who failed to prevent the infection are liable for damages. In nursing home wrongful deaths, this is often the caregiver, staff, or nursing home administration. A hospital may be held liable for a fatal pressure sore infection in a patient. 

A wrongful death claim recovers compensation for the decedent’s closest surviving family member, such as a spouse, child, or grandchild.

How Can a Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer In Arizona Help?

It takes meticulous documentation of evidence and a carefully calculated list of your damages to make a compelling claim for the highest settlement or court award for nursing home wrongful death damages, including in pressure sore deaths. Call Knapp & Roberts to speak to an attorney about your family’s right to compensation and a sense of justice for your grievous loss and your loved one’s pain and suffering.