Wheelchair Cushion

Make Sure You Pick the Right Wheelchair Cushion

For those who cannot for one reason or another walk the wheelchair is an incredible piece of equipment that can give them almost the same amount of mobility as the person who has the ability to walk. With this in mind you would not think choosing the best one for your needs would be such a complicated affair. However finding just the right wheelchair can indeed be very challenging as there are so many different styles and options to choose from depending on who is going to be using it and how it is going to be used and you need to choose the right wheelchair cushion to make it as comfortable as possible.

Choosing wheelchair cushions is not just a matter of picking the first cushion that comes along and looks like it will do the job, you must remember that the you are going to be spending a great deal of time in your wheelchair and the cushion needs to be both comfortable and supportive. If the cushions in a wheelchair are not supportive there is a likelihood that damage can be done to the spine and the muscles in your back, which are complications you can do without.

For the most part there are four different materials used to make a wheelchair cushion and each of them will work, but some of them may be more practical in certain applications than others. The most common and popular wheelchair cushions are made out of urethane foam. This may be in part because foam has been around the longest and provides good all around support for the person in the wheelchair. You will also find that almost every wheelchair arm cushion is made from foam because it is so resilient to wear.

Although they are much heavier than any other form of wheelchair cushion, gel cushions have been used with some success for those who have problems with atrophied muscles. The pouches of gel are attached to the top of a foam base and then the outer cover is put in place. The only real problem is the gel packs have been known to leak.

Aircushions for a wheelchair might sound like a good idea and for some they may work well as the completely support the body on a cushion of air However they can significantly reduce the overall stability of the wheelchair especially if the person likes to move around in his chair quite a bit and like any air filled product are prone to leakage.

The typical electric wheelchair cushion is made from a thermoplastic urethane honeycomb. This type cushion has an open honeycomb structure that helps to distribute the person's weight more evenly providing far better support over the long haul. An added bonus to the thermoplastic honeycomb is that because it is full of pockets of air it is much lighter than any of the other materials being used.

One thing to remember; for the person who is wheel chair bound the cushions do more than provide a comfortable place to sit, they also help to provide stability when the wheelchair is in motion. Choosing the right wheelchair cushions can make a great deal of difference in the wheelchair bound person's quality of life.