
MARSI: An under-recognized and serious complication
INTRODUCTION TO MARSI
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Medical Adhesive-Related Skin Injury (MARSI) is a common type of skin injury which is often seen in vulnerable patients with fragile skin such as elderly or pediatric patients
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It is caused by trauma to the skin from medical adhesives, and typically manifests as a skin tear, blistering, moist or macerated skin, folliculitis, skin-stripping, or superficially denuded skin
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Regimens and adhesives have been developed to minimize the incidence of MARSI, but it has proven difficult to achieve satisfactory adhesion while also avoiding skin damage
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MARSI can severely reduce the patients’ quality of life by causing pain, increased risk of infection and delayed healing
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A study in an elderly long-term patient population found that the incidence rate of MARSI was as high as 15.5%*)
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Even though MARSI has been under-recognized historically, its proven prevalence has brought attention to the problem both in the research literature and among health care companies
Source: WoundsUK; 3M; WoundSource
Notes: *) Konya et al, 2010