BACKGROUND: Pressure ulcers affect as many as 3 million Americans and are major sources of morbidity, mortality, and health care costs. PURPOSE: To summarize evidence comparing the effectiveness and safety of treatment strategies for adults with pressure ulcers. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, CINAHL, Evidence-Based Medicine Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, and Health Technology Assessment Database for English- or foreign-language studies; reference lists; gray literature; and individual product packets from manufacturers (January 1985 to October 2012). STUDY SELECTION: Randomized trials and comparative observational studies of treatments for pressure ulcers in adults and noncomparative intervention series (n 50) for surgical interventions and evaluation of harms. DATA EXTRACTION: Data were extracted and evaluated for accuracy of the extraction, quality of included studies, and strength of evidence. DATA SYNTHESIS: 174 studies met inclusion criteria and 92 evaluated complete wound healing. In comparison with standard care, placebo, or sham interventions, moderate-strength evidence showed that air-fluidized beds (5 studies (n = 908); high consistency), protein-containing nutritional supplements (12 studies (n = 562); high consistency), radiant heat dressings (4 studies (n = 160); moderate consistency), and electrical stimulation (9 studies (n = 397); moderate consistency) improved healing of pressure ulcers. Low-strength evidence showed that alternating-pressure surfaces, hydrocolloid dressings, platelet-derived growth factor, and light therapy improved healing of pressure ulcers. The evidence about harms was limited. LIMITATION: Applicability of results is limited by study quality, heterogeneity in methods and outcomes, and inadequate duration to assess complete wound healing. CONCLUSION: Moderate-strength evidence shows that healing of pressure ulcers in adults is improved with the use of air-fluidized beds, protein supplementation, radiant heat dressings, and electrical stimulation. PRIMARY FUNDING SOURCE: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

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