{"id":39015,"date":"2022-01-24T10:43:55","date_gmt":"2022-01-24T02:43:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/?p=39015"},"modified":"2023-03-14T14:50:35","modified_gmt":"2023-03-14T06:50:35","slug":"why-is-it-so-important-to-choose-the-right-wheelchair","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/2022\/01\/why-is-it-so-important-to-choose-the-right-wheelchair\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Is It So Important to Choose the Right Wheelchair?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A wheelchair that does not fit can increase the chance of <span style=\"color: #008080;\"><a style=\"color: #008080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/2022\/01\/wheelchair-related-injuries-from-choosing-the-wrong-wheelchair\/\">secondary injuries<\/a><\/span> caused by long-term wheelchair use. For example, a wheelchair that is <\/span><b>unable<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to help relieve pressure in the lower back or buttocks can cause damages to skin and <\/span><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><a style=\"color: #008080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/2021\/08\/what-are-pressure-sores\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">pressure sores<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A second example of a wheelchair that doesn\u2019t properly fit the user is when the wheelchair is equipped with armrests that are positioned too high. Long-term shrugging can lead to stiff deltoid muscles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A third example of a poorly fitted wheelchair is when the seat is too wide for the user. This can cause poor sitting posture and spine deformation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Therefore, it is crucial to keep the notion of \u201cFit\u201d in mind when choosing a wheelchair.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #008080;\">What factors should be considered when choosing a wheelchair?<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Not all wheelchairs are the same. You should choose the most suitable wheelchair for you according to your <\/span><b>body requirements<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>lifestyle.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><b>Fits Your Lifestyle<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"row\"  id=\"row-1626301255\">\n\n\t<div id=\"col-236241482\" class=\"col small-12 large-12\"  >\n\t\t<div class=\"col-inner text-center\"  >\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t<div class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\" id=\"image_2003447054\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"img-inner dark\" >\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"464\" src=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-5-2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-5-2.jpg 512w, https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-5-2-300x272.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n<style>\n#image_2003447054 {\n  width: 40%;\n}\n<\/style>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your lifestyle could be anything from your living space, how often you travel if you need to transfer in and out of your wheelchair a lot etc. You should also consider whether you intend to use a wheelchair, whether it\u2019s just a temporary aid, or if you need to use it every day. You can also consider if you intend to propel the wheelchair yourself or if you will have a caregiver to push you.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><b>Fits Your Body<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"row\"  id=\"row-104737445\">\n\n\t<div id=\"col-694417261\" class=\"col small-12 large-12\"  >\n\t\t<div class=\"col-inner text-center\"  >\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t<div class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\" id=\"image_764601339\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"img-inner dark\" >\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"465\" src=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-6.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-6.jpg 512w, https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-6-300x272.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n<style>\n#image_764601339 {\n  width: 40%;\n}\n<\/style>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fit for Pressure Relief\uff1a Typically, wheelchair users will use the wheelchair armrest to lift themselves to relieve pressure on the lower back or buttocks. It\u2019s important to consider if you are able to do this in your wheelchair or would you need additional assistance to reposition yourself? If so, then you might consider a wheelchair with a <\/span><b>tilt-in-space<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or <\/span><b>reclining<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> function.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fit the Size\uff1a We usually recommend that the wheelchair seat is approximately 2 inches wider than your hips. When you sit all the way back in your wheelchair, the distance between the front edge of the seat and the back of your knees should be about 2 to 3 inches. The seat depth should be slightly shorter than the upper leg\/femur length. Your legs and thighs should be comfortable when the feet are placed on footrests.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><b>Fit Your Condition<\/b><\/span><\/h3>\n<div class=\"row\"  id=\"row-1134307971\">\n\n\t<div id=\"col-503020387\" class=\"col small-12 large-12\"  >\n\t\t<div class=\"col-inner text-center\"  >\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t<div class=\"img has-hover x md-x lg-x y md-y lg-y\" id=\"image_1421092099\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"img-inner dark\" >\n\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"512\" height=\"463\" src=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-7.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-7.jpg 512w, https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/unnamed-7-300x271.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 512px) 100vw, 512px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n<style>\n#image_1421092099 {\n  width: 40%;\n}\n<\/style>\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Wheelchair users can have a wide range of needs and conditions, long term or short term. The three main categories of wheelchair users are elderly, post-surgery users, and stroke sufferers. Each group has its own set of needs and requirements:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Elderly: lack of strength and unable to walk.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Surgery: fractures, joint surgery, rehabilitation etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stroke sufferers: hemiparesis, paralysis, spinal injury, diabetes, and gout.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In all of these cases, it\u2019s important to talk to a doctor or therapist about your condition as they will help to recommend mobility equipment.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400; color: #008080;\">Choose a wheelchair that fits your budget<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The last aspect to consider when choosing your wheelchair is your budget. Be clear of what your budget is. Can you get government assistance? Is your wheelchair covered by health insurance? All of these answers will affect what type of wheelchair you will be able to afford.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">KARMA has a wide range of wheelchairs covering an extensive variety of needs, from <span style=\"color: #008080;\">u<\/span><\/span><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><a style=\"color: #008080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/featured_item\/km-2501\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ltra lightweight manual wheelchairs<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for the elderly to more <\/span><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><a style=\"color: #008080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/product_cate-2\/power-wheelchair\/#tab_top-line\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">complex adjustable power chairs<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for the physically disabled. The <\/span><span style=\"color: #008080;\"><a style=\"color: #008080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/product_cate-2\/manual\/#tab_soma\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">SOMA line<\/span><\/a><\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of wheelchairs (also manufactured by KARMA) also aims to satisfy users with basic wheelchair needs at an affordable price.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A wheelchair that does not fit can increase the chance of secondary injuries caused by long-term wheelchair use. For example, a wheelchair that is unable to help relieve pressure in the lower back or buttocks can cause damages to skin and pressure sores. A second example of a wheelchair that doesn\u2019t properly fit the user [&#8230;]\n","protected":false},"author":52647,"featured_media":46128,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538,580],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39015"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/52647"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39015"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39015\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46131,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39015\/revisions\/46131"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46128"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39015"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39015"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.karmamedical.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39015"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}