Cost Impact

This analysis estimates the average incremental hospital cost is ~$10,708 for every hospital patient who develops a hospital-acquired pressure injury (HAPI), regardless of stage. In simple terms: if a patient develops a HAPI, the hospital spends about $10.7K more on that admission, on average, due to added care and treatment once the injury occurs.

Overall, the annual prevalence of pressure injuries and annual mean hospitalization cost increased ($69,499.29 to $102,939.14).

AHRQ HCUP data show pressure-ulcer–related adult hospitalizations carried materially higher utilization and cost: mean stay 12.7–14.1 days vs 5.0 days without pressure ulcers, and mean cost per stay $16,800–$20,400 vs $9,900. Over half were discharged to long-term care, and mortality was higher.

This University of Alabama at Birmingham hospital study found that developing a hospital-acquired Stage II+ pressure ulcer was associated with substantially higher hospital costs and longer stays. Mean unadjusted costs were $37,288 vs $13,924 and LOS 30.4 vs 12.8 days. Even after adjustment, costs and LOS remained significantly higher.

This Hopkins burn ICU study found that implementing real-time pressure mapping reduced HAPI-related care costs from about $6,750 to $3,800 per patient. These savings reflect direct pressure-injury treatment costs only (e.g., wound care), not systemic complications or extended hospitalization, and were driven by fewer and less severe pressure injuries

This UAB tertiary teaching-hospital study found that patients who developed hospital-acquired pressure ulcers incurred substantially higher costs and longer stays. Adjusted analyses showed costs of $29,048 vs $13,819 and length of stay of 20.9 vs 12.7 days, confirming pressure ulcers independently drive excess inpatient utilization beyond baseline severity.

This study from NYU School of Medicine found Stage IV pressure ulcers cost about $125k–$129k per patient in hospital treatment costs when ulcer-related complications were included. These costs are far higher than prior estimates and emphasize early recognition and treatment to stop progression to Stage IV and avoid extreme, non-reimbursed “never event” costs.

“In a VA study of veterans with spinal cord injury, the presence of a pressure injury increased average health care costs by $77,587 compared to those without, driven by higher inpatient costs, emphasizing the need for prevention.”

This peer-reviewed BMJ Quality & Safety cost-effectiveness study analyzed 34,000+ hospital patients and quantified the financial impact of severe pressure injuries. It reported that Stage 3–4 (full-thickness) pressure injuries add about $6,209 per patient-day, underscoring the high daily cost burden and the value of effective, hospital-wide prevention.

At St. Anthony’s Medical Center, Continuous Bedside Pressure Mapping enabled use of lower-cost support surfaces, reducing reliance on specialty rentals and delivering net savings of $19 per patient per day after including the cost of the visualization system itself.