Proning Pillows for Intensive Care Unit: Comparison of Chest and Pelvis Interface Pressure Distributions Between a Novel Proning Pillow System and Standard Pillows in Healthy Subjects

During the COVID-19 pandemic, intensive care units (ICUs) across the country have been inundated with increasing numbers of COVID patients. Hypoxic patients in ICU require mechanical ventilation and this can be improved by proning these patients to improve oxygenation and prevent ventilator-induced lung injury. Standard practice is to use standard hospital pillows to support the pelvis and chest of the patient while they are proned. These pillows do not provide much support to the patients and often need to be adjusted due to the patient 'sinking' into them. Prolonged pronation also leads to pressure sores in these anatomical locations which burden the Trust financially and also cause distress to patients.

A new proning pillow system was developed by Dr Sashika Selladurai and manufactured for the ICU in Aintree hospital which is made from polyurethane memory foam designed to relieve pressure on the patients and prevent pressure sores that often occur during prolonged proning. The pillow system is also designed to withstand the load of heavier patients and reduce the risk of 'sinking' into the pillows when proned for long periods of time.

The aim of the study is to compare the performance of the new proning pillow system with standard pillows, particularly in relation to the risk of pressure sores, by evaluating differences in chest and pelvis interface pressures between the two pillow types. This will be done by having healthy NHS staff lie on the pillows in the prone position for a short period of time while recording the pressure distribution on the pillows using pressure mats placed between them and the pillows. This will help understand the relative risk of pressure sores developing when the new pillow system is used. It is hypothesised that the new pillow system does not increase the risk of pressure sores developing.

The new proning pillow system is a Class 1 CE marked medical device. The proning pillow system consists of a chest pillow and a pelvis pillow made from memory foam designed to reduce contact pressures and peak interface pressures in patients and allow patients to be placed in neutral position for ventilation.