Thermal Imaging to Identify Distinct Temperature Patterns in Various Stages of Pressure Ulcers

Overview

40 patients total with pressure ulcers with a decubitus pressure ulcer will be included in this study. Ten patients with a Stage I, II, III, and IV decubitus pressure ulcer will be included to be analyzed with a thermal imaging camera. Thermal imaging of the various stages of pressure ulcer will be analyzed to determine if a recognizable pattern of thermal distribution can be identified which can then be applied to identify patients at risk of developing pressure ulcers at an earlier stage in their hospital course.

Study Type

  • Study Type: Observational [Patient Registry]
  • Study Design
    • Time Perspective: Prospective
  • Study Primary Completion Date: April 29, 2019

Detailed Description

This study will be a single-center prospective Phase I study in which the use of a thermal imaging camera will be used to obtain imaging data on decubitus ulcers of various stages. The data collected during this study will be used to determine if stage-specific thermal distribution patterns can be identified. This information will then be used to design future studies in which patients are risk for the development of pressure ulcers are screened for the presence of pressure ulcers not detectable upon physical examination so that preventative measures and treatments can be instituted. A total of 40 patients with pressure decubitus ulcers will be recruited for inclusion in this study. The investigators plan to enroll ten patients with each stage of pressure ulcer (i.e. Stage I-IV), which will provide the investigators with a set of thermal imaging data from which the investigators will determine if thermal distribution patterns unique to each stage of pressure ulcer can be identified. It is anticipated that 40 patients who meet the inclusion criteria and distribution of pressure ulcer staging will be enrolled within one year of the start date of this study. The investigators are planning a study of a continuous response variable from independent control and experimental subjects with 1 control(s) per experimental subject. It is estimated that the response within each subject group will be normally distributed with standard deviation 25. If the true difference in the experimental and control means is 35, the investigators will need to study 9 experimental subjects and 9 control subjects to be able to reject the null hypothesis that the population means of the experimental and control groups are equal with probability (power) 0.8. The Type I error probability associated with this test of this null hypothesis is 0.05.

Interventions

  • Device: Thermal imaging
    • Thermal imaging of the various stages of pressure ulcer will be analyzed to determine if a recognizable pattern of thermal distribution can be identified which can then be applied to identify patients at risk of developing pressure ulcers at an earlier stage in their hospital course.

Arms, Groups and Cohorts

  • Stage I Pressure Ulcer
    • Ten patients with a Stage I decubitus pressure ulcer will be included to be analyzed with a thermal imaging camera.
  • Stage II Pressure Ulcer
    • Ten patients with a Stage II decubitus pressure ulcer will be included to be analyzed with a thermal imaging camera.
  • Stage III Pressure Ulcer
    • Ten patients with a Stage III decubitus pressure ulcer will be included to be analyzed with a thermal imaging camera.
  • Stage IV Pressure Ulcer
    • Ten patients with a Stage IV decubitus pressure ulcer will be included to be analyzed with a thermal imaging camera.

Clinical Trial Outcome Measures

Primary Measures

  • Difference in temperature between a Stage I, Stage 2, Stage 3 and Stage 4 decubitus pressure ulcer as measured by using the thermal imaging camera.
    • Time Frame: Up to one year
    • Each subject will receive one temperature measurement during inpatient status of the decubitus pressure ulcer using the thermal imaging camera.

Participating in This Clinical Trial

Inclusion Criteria

  • Patients with sacral/heel pressure ulcers, admitted to University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) inpatient services. – Patients 18-years old or older. – Patients have an expected survival of > 48 hours Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients not compliant with obtaining thermal imaging. – Patients not expected to survive for 48 hours.

Gender Eligibility: All

Minimum Age: 18 Years

Maximum Age: 99 Years

Are Healthy Volunteers Accepted: No

Investigator Details

  • Lead Sponsor
    • University of Arkansas
  • Provider of Information About this Clinical Study
    • Sponsor
  • Overall Official(s)
    • Jacob T Carlson, MD, Principal Investigator, University of Arkansas

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