Stage 4 Bedsore in a Nursing Home

Understanding Stage 4 Pressure Ulcers & Nursing Home Neglect

A stage 4 bedsore is an area of damaged skin and tissue caused by prolonged pressure. Also known as stage 4 pressure ulcers or decubitus ulcers, they’re the most advanced form of a bedsore.

Stage 4 bedsores are often as wide as the palm of a hand and look like craters that have penetrated through multiple layers of dead tissue. In many cases, muscle, ligaments, or bone may be visible.

A stage 4 pressure ulcer can lead to life-threatening complications, like a blood infection called sepsis or a bone infection known as osteomyelitis.

LawFirm.com works with experienced nursing home abuse lawyers who have secured over $318 million for residents with stage 4 bedsores and other nursing home injuries.

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Can You Sue for a Stage 4 Bedsore?

You may be able to sue a nursing home or other assisted living facility if you or someone you love has developed a stage 4 bedsore while in care. These advanced-stage pressure ulcers are often a warning sign of abuse or neglect.

Nursing homes have a legal duty to provide a safe and healthy environment for residents. When they fail to do so, they may be required to pay for the harm they’ve caused.

A nursing home abuse attorney can explain your legal rights and take action to hold the facility accountable. Money from a stage 4 bedsore lawsuit can help pay for your loved one’s medical bills, transfer to a safer facility, and more.

Stage 4 Bedsore Lawsuit Settlement Amounts

The average nursing home abuse lawsuit settlement is about $400,000, but stage 4 bedsore cases often result in much higher payouts, especially when neglect is involved.

Stage 4 bedsore settlements and verdicts include:

• $30.9 million for an 86-year-old patient at Pine Creek Care Center in California who developed a stage 4 sore and died a year later
• $5 million to a nursing home resident with a stage 4 pressure ulcer on the sacrum or lower back area
• $2.1 million for a 70-year-old patient in a Florida nursing home
• $1.5 million to a Minnesota woman with multiple stage 4 bedsores
• $420,000 for a patient with a stage 4 ulceration that became infected
• $850,000 to a patient who needed surgery after developing a stage 4 sacral pressure ulcer while being treated for a broken hip
• Over $800,000 for an older man with stage 2, 3, and 4 bedsores due to poor care
• $2.3 million to the family of a Florida resident with dementia who died from bedsore-related injuries
• $1.5 million for a Georgia resident with stage 4 bedsores
• $1.25 million to the family of an immobile patient who died from nursing home injuries related to stage 4 pressure ulcers on her heels
• $1 million for an elderly resident with a stage 4 sacrum wound
• Over $10 million to a Florida nursing home resident whose stage 4 decubitus ulcer required surgery

The case value of a stage 4 bedsore lawsuit depends on factors like the severity of the wound, treatment costs, and whether the wound caused or contributed to the patient’s death.

A skilled nursing home abuse attorney can evaluate your case for free and fight for the highest possible payout.

Steps to File a Stage 4 Bedsore Lawsuit in 2025

An experienced stage 4 bedsore lawyer can handle all the legal legwork involved in filing a nursing home neglect lawsuit, making the process as easy and stress-free as possible.

With a nursing home lawyer fighting for the compensation your family deserves, you’ll be able to focus on your loved one’s recovery and moving them to a safer facility.

The stage 4 bedsore attorneys in our network can:

1. Provide a free case review: Top nursing home neglect attorneys offer free case reviews, so you can find out if you may be able to take legal action without any financial risk.
2. Collect evidence: Evidence like medical records detailing the development and progression of the bedsore, photographs of the injury, and expert testimony will be used to show how the facility was negligent in providing care.
3. File your stage 4 pressure ulcer lawsuit: Your nursing home abuse lawyer will file your lawsuit correctly and before deadlines called statutes of limitations.
4. Secure compensation: Your legal team will work to negotiate a bedsore settlement with the nursing home. If your case doesn’t settle, your lawyer can seek compensation from a stage 4 bedsore verdict.

Most stage 4 bedsore cases are resolved through out-of-court settlements, providing families with financial relief faster and with less hassle.

What Causes a Pressure Ulcer Stage 4?

Stage 4 pressure ulcers often begin with pressure on the skin and can develop quickly, especially when patients have underlying health conditions.

Causes of a stage 4 bedsore include:

• Constant pressure: Sitting or lying in the same position for long periods can restrict blood flow to certain areas, leading to a bedsore. This is especially common in bony parts of the body, like the tailbone, shoulder blades, and ankle.
• Friction: If skin repeatedly rubs against bedding, clothing, or other surfaces, it can weaken its protective layers and increase the risk of injury.
• Moisture: Excessive moisture from perspiration, urine, or stool can soften the skin, making it more prone to damage.
• Shear: When the skin is pulled in one direction while underlying tissue is pulled in the opposite direction, the force can damage blood vessels and make the skin more vulnerable to bedsores.

“Bedsores occur when pressure reduces or cuts off blood flow to your skin. This lack of blood flow can cause a pressure wound injury to develop in as little as two hours.”

– Cleveland Clinic

Nursing home staff are trained to prevent stage 4 bedsores from forming by regularly adjusting a resident’s position, monitoring their skin, and properly treating early-stage bedsores before they progress.

Nursing Home Negligence & Stage 4 Bed Wounds

A stage 4 pressure ulcer is often a sign that a patient isn’t receiving proper care and may be at serious risk of infection and other health complications.

Nursing home negligence can lead to stage 4 bedsores when:

• A facility hires inexperienced caregivers or provides inadequate training
• Facilities don’t have enough staff
• Patients become malnourished or dehydrated
• Poor hygiene and unsanitary conditions are ignored
• Staff fail to reposition patients frequently enough

Nursing home residents who have limited mobility, are bedridden, or have medical issues that require round-the-clock care have an increased risk of developing stage 4 bedsores. This includes patients with Alzheimer’s or other dementias.

Regardless of the cause of nursing home neglect or patient risk factors, it’s never acceptable to allow a patient’s wound to progress until it becomes a life-threatening emergency.

Signs and Symptoms of a Stage 4 Pressure Sore

At this advanced stage, pressure sores affect more than just the surface of the skin. Recognizing and addressing the symptoms of a stage 4 pressure sore early is critical to preventing further harm.

Signs of a stage 4 pressure ulcer include:

• A deep tissue injury that looks like a crater
• Dead or blackened tissue indicating decay
• Exposed muscle or bone
• Extreme pain
• Fever, chills, or confusion
• Infection signaled by pus, discharge, or a foul odor
• Lack of sensation due to nerve damage

If you’ve spotted signs of a stage 4 bedsore in a loved one, LawFirm.com may be able to help you seek compensation for their medical expenses and a facility where they can get the care they deserve.

Complications of Stage 4 Pressure Ulcers

If a stage 4 pressure ulcer is left undiagnosed or untreated, or if it’s poorly managed, this wound can lead to severe and potentially life-threatening complications.

Complications of a pressure ulcer stage 4 include:

• Infections: A stage 4 pressure ulcer greatly increases a person’s risk of infection. Soft tissue infections may occur along with cellulitis, a skin infection, and osteomyelitis, a bone infection.
• Sepsis: The deep wound increases the risk of an infection entering the bloodstream and causing a serious and sometimes fatal condition called sepsis.
• Hardened calcium buildup: The body may respond to severe tissue damage by depositing calcium in the affected area. This can lead to the formation of calcified tissue masses, complicating wound management and healing.
• Amputations: Patients may need to undergo an amputation if the stage 4 bedsore causes significant damage to the underlying bone.

A stage 4 bedsore can also cause a resident to experience intense pain due to deep tissue damage.

In serious cases, patients with stage 4 bedsores are also at risk of passing away. If that happens, family members may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit and hold the facility accountable for their loved one’s suffering.

What Is the Life Expectancy of a Stage 4 Bedsore Patient?

A patient’s stage 4 bedsore life expectancy varies depending on their overall health, age, and the medical care they receive. Some patients have lived for years after a diagnosis when complications were managed.

However, complications like infection and tissue death can significantly shorten life expectancy, especially when proper wound care is delayed or denied.

Elderly patients with severe pressure ulcers like Stage 4 bedsores may face more than double the risk of death compared to those without them, according to an analysis of over 5,500 patients published in the National Library of Medicine.

If your loved one developed a stage 4 bedsore in a care facility, it may be a sign of serious neglect.

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Prevention of Stage 4 Ulcers

There are steps nursing home staff can take to prevent stage 4 pressure ulcers in residents, making their occurrence both avoidable and unacceptable.

Caregivers can prevent stage 4 bedsores in patients by:

• Helping them reposition when they’re seated or in a bed
• Keeping their skin clean and dry
• Making sure they’re eating and staying hydrated
• Monitoring early-stage wounds and providing care to stop them from worsening
• Performing regular skin checks
• Using cushions to ease pressure
• Washing and changing bedsheets and clothing

Filing a pressure ulcer lawsuit can help you hold a negligent nursing home accountable and possibly even motivate the facility to change its policies to protect other residents from similar harm.

How an Early-Stage Bedsore Becomes a Stage 4 Wound

If left untreated, bedsores go through different stages as they progress and worsen. There are four pressure ulcer stages, with a stage 1 bedsore being the least serious.

The stages of bedsores are:

• Stage 1 bedsore: A pressure sore can develop after just 2 hours of immobility. It appears as a red spot on the skin, is warm to the touch, and may be painful.
• Stage 2 bedsore: At this stage, the skin breaks at the weakened area where the pressure persists, leaving a blister.
• Stage 3 bedsore: The skin around the open sore begins to decay, releasing a foul odor. It may also begin showing signs of infection, like pus or drainage.
• Stage 4 bedsore: The wound becomes wide, penetrating deep into the skin and potentially leading to severe health complications.

When early-stage bedsores are treated quickly, more serious wounds like stage 3 and 4 bedsores can often be avoided. For this reason, a stage 3 or 4 pressure ulcer may be a sign of nursing home neglect.

Stage 4 Bedsore Treatment

There are several different treatment options for a stage 4 bedsore, depending on where the wound is located and how deep it has penetrated.

Stage 4 pressure ulcer treatment includes:

• Infection control: Antibiotics may be prescribed if there is evidence of a bacterial infection. Regular wound cleaning and proper hygiene are essential to prevent further complications.
• Pressure redistribution: To relieve pressure on the affected area, patients may require specialized pressure-reducing mattresses or cushions. Caregivers must reposition patients frequently to prevent continued wound pressure.
• Wound debridement: A health care provider can remove dead or infected tissue to create a clean wound bed, which may improve the healing process.
• Wound dressings: Specialized wound dressings, like foams or ointments, help maintain a moist environment, manage drainage, and protect the open wound from infection.
• Reconstructive surgery: In severe cases, this procedure can be used to clean, fill, and close the wound using a tissue transfer or healthy skin graft to promote healing.

These treatments are often painful, and they can be expensive. Compensation from a nursing home abuse lawsuit can help families afford stage 4 bedsore treatments for their loved one.

Get Legal Help for a Stage 4 Pressure Wound in a Nursing Home

Nursing home residents and their families expect that facilities will provide basic care. Sadly, that’s not always the case.

Stage 4 bedsores are almost always preventable, which means that patients with these injuries may have been forced to endure needless pain and suffering.

Our legal partners never charge any upfront costs or hourly fees, and they can help families in all 50 states.

Call (888) 726-9160 right now or get a free case review to see if they may be able to help your family seek justice.