Bradford: Salitas launches powered leg suspension system

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Salitas, a health innovation company spun out from the University of Bradford and focusing on research and development of a range of products designed to improve treatment and aid recovery, is launching a new powered leg suspension system. The system was developed by staff at the University of Bradford’s School of Health Studies to limit injuries resulting from lifting patients’ legs in operating theatres and hospital wards.

The system lifts and supports the patient’s leg via one of two types of sling. The first – a high-strength disposable product available in sterile or non-sterile versions – ensures patient comfort and supports either the thigh or the heel, and is useful in the plaster room or the theatre. The second is a light-weight sling, resistant to chlorine-based cleaning agents with a wipe down surface, which is designed to provide full support along both the thigh and the calf.

The advantage of this two-part sling system is that it can help improve patient recovery rates as it avoids pressure at the back of the calf or heel, hyperextension of the knee joint and allows movement at the hip. It can also be used as a stand-alone product for drip suspension in close proximity to the patient.

Sue Barton, creator of the leg support system at the University of Bradford’s School of Health Studies, said: “Our studies show that the use of a mechanical device to lift and support the leg significantly lowers the amount of ‘work done’ by the muscles in the lower back and thereby significantly reduces risks. We invented this system not only to improve the working practice of health professionals involved in lifting and supporting a leg, but to allow the patient’s leg to be held in a position of comfort – thereby delivering improved patient care.”