In a recent blog, our nursing home abuse and negligence attorneys in Baltimore, Maryland discussed the danger of sepsis in nursing homes, a leading cause of death among elderly residents.
Sepsis is a deadly blood disease that forms a massive infection in the body, resulting in blood poisoning. In nursing homes across the country, sepsis often results from an infection of surgical wounds, surgical drains, intravenous lines, and stage IV pressure sores, or decubitus ulcers, and is often associated with nursing home neglect and abuse.
It is reported that every year, over 200,000 people in this country die from different forms of sepsis. Sepsis usually begins as an infection and spreads quickly, causing tissue damage, organ failure and also death. Sepsis is very dangerous with nursing home residents, as their immune systems are often weak.
Preventative measures for sepsis in nursing homes include early detection and treatment of infected areas, like pressure sores, a leading cause of nursing home injury that affects nearly one million Americans every year. As our Maryland nursing home injury attorneys reported in a blog, pressure sores often develop after a resident stays in one position for too long, which causes a restriction of the resident’s blood supply to the skin, wherein pressure sores form due to the unrelieved pressure.
Nursing home residents who are elderly and have restricted movement are highly susceptible to bed sores, and if the sores go untreated, they can lead to bacterial sepsis. Many cases of advanced pressure sores are often the result of nursing home neglect, and many times lead to a resident’s death. Nursing home staff should pay special attention to elderly residents who are at risk for developing bed sores, or sepsis, in order to prevent nursing home injury or wrongful death. Around 60,000 people are reported to die every year from some form of complication surrounding the more advanced stages of pressure sores.
If a Maryland nursing home neglects to protect residents from developing pressure sores and sepsis that could result in resident injury or death, the nursing home could be held liable for Maryland nursing home negligence or wrongful death. Our attorneys at Lebowitz and Mzhen Personal Injury Lawyers represent victims and their families who wish to recover personal injury compensation from nursing home negligence and harm. Contact us today.
Nursing Home Abuse Resource: Bacterial Sepsis
Related Web Resources:
National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA)