Pressure ulcer education 6: incontinence assessment and care

Assessing the patient and Identifying skin damage associated with increased moisture, often caused by incontinence is an essential part of good skin care. Excessive moisture on the skin due to factors such as urinary and/or faecal incontinence or wound exudate greatly increases the risk of pressure ulcers, so moisture-associated skin damage is now reported alongside pressure ulcers. This article - the sixth in an eight-part series on developing a core education curriculum for pressure-ulcer prevention and management - describes how incontinence-related, moisture-associated skin damage occurs, outlines other causes of moisture-related skin damage and details key factors for prevention and management.

In this article…

• Moisture-associated skin damage as a risk factor for pressure ulcers

• How incontinence-related skin damage occurs

• Prevention and management strategies

This article has been double-blind peer reviewed

Key points

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Excessive moisture on the skin can cause damage, increasing the risk of pressure ulcers

The most common cause of moisture-associated skin damage is incontinence-associated dermatitis

Pressure ulcers and incontinence-associated dermatitis are often confused with each other but differ in location and shape

Identifying patients at risk from excessive moisture and instigating early skin protection is key to preventing skin damage

Effective treatment also relies on identifying the underlying cause of the excessive moisture