Course Description
Sitting-acquired pressure ulcers (PU) are one of the most devastating complications in chairfast patients, with major impacts on the quality of life of patients and the healthcare economy. Populations at risk include for example spinal cord injury patients and elderly with neuromuscular impairments or cognitive disorders. Basic research in the PU field, particularly pertaining to sitting-acquired PU, has been boosted over the recent years, adopting state-of-the-art approaches from the more mature bioengineering and biomechanics fields, including e.g. sophisticated computer modeling, cellular and tissue engineering for basic research as well as therapy, sophisticated imaging, biomolecular markers and proteomics for early diagnosis, and more. Knowledge from these basic research activities is gradually being transferred into clinical practice. This workshop will provide an overview of the exciting recent progress in research of sitting-acquired PU but with a strong emphasis on clinical practice and implementation, including case studies where relevant. The new international guidelines will be addressed in the context of sitting-acquired PU. Participants will gain understanding of why and how sitting-acquired PU happen as well as on how their occurrence can be substantially minimized.

Course objectives
At the end of this one-day workshop, participants will leave with understanding of:
• Current knowledge on the aetiology of sitting-acquired PU
• Known biomechanical risk factors for sitting-acquired PU
• The status of development of state-of-the-art technologies for minimizing the occurrence of sitting-acquired PU
• Practical means and protocols for minimizing the occurrence of sitting-acquired PU

Amit Gefen
Prof. Amit Gefen received the B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering and M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Tel Aviv University in 1994, 1997, and 2001, respectively. During 2002-2003 he was a postdoc at the University of Pennsylvania, USA. He is currently an Associate Professor with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering of Tel Aviv University. His research interests are in studying normal and pathological effects of biomechanical factors on the structure and function of cells, tissues and organs, with emphasis on the musculoskeletal system and applications in chronic wound research. On 2007-2008 he was a visiting scientist in Eindhoven University of Technology, where he developed tissue-engineered model systems to study pressure ulcers. To date, Prof. Gefen published more than 100 articles in peer-reviewed international journals, many of which on chronic wounds, and he also edited two books. He is now editing a book series on Mechanobiology, Tissue Engineering and Biomaterials published by Springer, and serving at Editorial Boards of several international journals, the Journal of Biomechanics, Clinical Biomechanics, Medical Engineering & Physics, Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering and the Journal of Tissue Viability, to mention a few. Amit Gefen is currently also a member of the Executive Board of the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP).

Paulo Alves

Paulo Alves is a RN, McS in education, has worked as a nurse in several hospital settings, particularly in Intensive care, and has been a member of the quality department. A specialist in Public Health, he has been involved in numerous national pressure ulcer research projects and in various international studies on Pressure Ulcers and on wound care in general. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Health Sciences Institute – Porto, at the Catholic University of Portugal. His research interests are the aetiology of the development of Pressure Ulcers, the development of intelligent support surfaces, and the influence of repositioning, which is the topic of his PhD Thesis. Paulo has published articles in national and international journals, many of them on chronic wounds. He is a member of several wound care societies, the Wound Management Portuguese Association – APTFeridas, the European Wound Management Association – EWMA, and Sociedad IberolatinoAmericana de ulceras y heridas - SILAUHE. He has been an invited Speaker and Chairman in numerous national and international conferences and has also organized several national and international scientific congresses and meetings on wound care. Paulo Alves is currently also a member of the Executive Board of the EPUAP.

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