Pressure Ulcer Prevention Study in SCI (PUPS)

Medically serious pressure ulcers are a common complication of spinal cord injury (SCI), and are associated with high treatment costs and reduced quality of life. This study will examine the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of a promising lifestyle-based intervention designed to reduce the incidence of pressure ulcers among culturally diverse, community dwelling adults with SCI who have had serious pressure ulcers.

The intervention being tested, termed lifestyle redesign (LR), is based on prior SCI literature as well as on the results of a qualitative pilot study undertaken by our study group. This intervention targets several psychosocial mediating variables that have been shown to be important in prevention of pressure ulcers in daily living contexts. Participants assigned to the LR condition receive individualized in-home sessions, personal phone calls, and incident-based contacts for a 12-month period, followed by 12 months of no intervention. Participants in the control condition do not receive any study-based intervention, but (along with the LR group) have continuing access to the standard options for prevention and treatment that are available through Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center.

In addition to identifying a pressure ulcer prevention strategy, the planned research will lead to the development of testable theoretical models of the intervening process mechanisms that link the intervention to pressure ulcer reduction.