come into contact with the bed, especially to areas of risk such as the
sacrum and the heels.
Next, take a look at the mattresses on your OR tables. Gel pads that
are ½ to ¾ of an inch thick work well. There are also thinner pads,
about
3
⁄8 of an inch, that have parallel columns of air that inflate and
deflate during the case to change the pressures against the patient's
skin. Inflatable waffle mattresses have little pockets of air with vent-
ing holes in between that let air flow and moisture vent to keep
patients dry.
Patients having surgery while in a prone, face-down position need
dressings applied to their face, chest and chin. The front of the body
doesn't have a lot of padding and ulcerates very rapidly.
