New Products in Support Surfaces

Eric Flam, Ph.D., NTL Associates, Inc., East Brunswick, NJ

INTRODUCTION

The development of support surface products has become a major factor in medical device technology. Factors such as new specialty materials, improved manufacturing processes, more responsive product designs and computer driven controls have been integrated with improved understanding of the pathology leading to pressure ulcers. This has resulted in a wide range of products. Many of these products fall into the standard product types which include non-powered pads, protectors, overlays and mattresses, powered overlays, mattresses and beds and air fluidized beds. Others are hybrids that incorporate features of more than one standard type. To give the reader an appreciation of the dynamics of support surface development it is useful to list new products that are available. This article presents a listing of new or significantly modified products shown or discussed at the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care held in May 2001.

NEW PRODUCTS

The following listing offers a list of the manufacturer, product name, product type and company Website contact information. There are attributes of these products that are important to the readers. A future article will present some of those attributes that receive the greatest numbers of queries from ECPN's readership.

Manufacturer: B.G. Industries, Inc.

Product Name: AccuMax^™ Self Adjusting Pressure Management System

Product Type: Nonpowered flotation therapy mattress

Manufacturer: Crown Therapeutics, Inc., a ROHO group company

Product Name: PRODIGY Mattress Overlay^®

Product Type: Nonpowered flotation therapy mattress

Manufacturer: DM Systems, Inc.

Product Name: Heelift^® Smooth Suspension Boot

Product Type: Skin pressure protector

Manufacturer: EG Design and Manufacturing

Product Name: Heelbooster

Product Type: Skin pressure protector

Manufacturer: EHOB, Inc.

Product Name: Waffle^® Advanced Support System Technology

Product Type: Nonpowered flotation therapy mattress

Manufacturer: Frontier Therapeutics

Product Name: Repose^™ Mattress Overlay

Product Type:?Nonpowered flotation therapy mattress

Manufacturer: Gaymar Industries, Inc.

Product Name: ISOFLEX^™ Mattress

Product Type: Nonpowered flotation therapy mattress

Manufacturer: Hill-Rom^®

Product Name: TotalCare SpO₂RT^™ Pulmonary Therapy System

Product Type: Powered patient rotation bed

Manufacturer: Huntleigh Healthcare, Inc.

Product Name: DFS^® 3 Advanced Dynamic Flotation System

Product Type: Powered flotation therapy ?

Manufacturer: KCI USA, Inc.

Product Name:?AtmosAir™ 9000 Atmospheric Therapy MRS

Product Type:?Nonpowered flotation therapy mattress

Manufacturer:?Medline Industries, Inc.

Product Name:?TheraTurn Advantage

Product Type:?Powered patient rotation bed

Manufacturer:?Pegasus Airwave Inc.

Product Name: Trinova^® Mattress and Seating System

Product Type:?Powered flotation therapy mattress?

Manufacturer:?Restorative Care of America, Inc.

Product Name: Phase II Multi Podus^® System

Product Type:?Skin pressure protector

Manufacturer:?Tempur-Medical, Inc.

Product Name: TempurPlus 3^TM advanced therapy mattress system

Product Type:?Powered flotation therapy bed

Manufacturer:?Tharos LLC

Product Name: HEEL MINDER^™ Foot Elevator

Product Type:?Skin pressure protector