Table 1 National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel devised system for staging pressure injuries
Stages | Severity/damage |
|---|---|
Stage 1 | - Intact, skin - Nonblanchable erythema |
Stage 2 | - Partial thickness skin loss, exposing dermis - The area is pink/red and moist/blistered - Fat and other deep tissue are not visible |
Stage 3 | - Full-thickness skin loss - Visible fat and granulation tissue - Slough can be visible - Bone, muscle, cartilage, tendon, ligament, or fascia is not visible |
Stage 4 | - Full-thickness skin and tissue loss - Bone, muscle, cartilage, tendon, ligament, or fascia are exposed - Epibole often occurs |
Unstageable pressure injury | - Obscured, full-thickness skin loss - Tissue loss to an extent that there is difficulty in identifying the involved tissue |
Deep tissue pressure injury | - Intact or non-intact skin with localized area of persistent nonblanchable deep red, maroon, purple - Discolorations or epidermal separation |