Abstract: A cushioning mattress is provided to normalize and distribute the weight of a patient's body to reduce the tangential forces bearing on the skin of the patient. The cushioning mattress comprises a top surface, a bottom surface and a series of alternating "tunnel" billows and "loop" billows. Each tunnel billow comprises a separate piece of material affixed to the top or bottom surface along two parallel seams to define a wide-based closed cell. Each loop billow comprises a separate piece of material affixed to the top or bottom surface along a single seam to define a narrow-based closed. Each tunnel and loop billow contains a visco-elastic material capable of conforming to any surface which it engages.

Abstract: A single-chambered static pressure device and method for supporting and protecting a human lower extremity and for normalizing the pressure and forces acting thereon includes an inflatable wrap or boot-like device having a single internal air chamber and including an interior plastic sheet and an exterior plastic sheet joined peripherally together forming said air chamber therebetween, a nozzle valve for admitting air into the air chamber, and fasteners for releasably securing the inflatable device about the lower extremity. The plastics sheets forming the single air chamber have a plurality of aligned openings extending therethrough and the sheets are joined about the circumference of each hole for providing heat and moisture dissipation, ventilation and visibility therethrough.