ROHO is a brand of air-filled cushions and mattress overlays designed to prevent and heal pressure injuries, primarily for people who use wheelchairs or spend extended time in bed. Made up of interconnected rubber air cells, ROHO products work by distributing body weight evenly across a surface, reducing the concentrated pressure points that cut off blood flow and cause skin breakdown. Now owned by Permobil, ROHO is one of the most widely prescribed pressure-relief cushion systems in rehabilitation and long-term care.
How the Air Cell System Works
A ROHO cushion looks like a grid of flexible, balloon-like cells that are all connected internally. When you sit on one, air shifts freely between cells to match your body’s contours. This is what the company calls “Dry Floatation” technology: your body sinks into and is cradled by the surface, similar to floating in water, but without the moisture. The key benefit is that soft tissue maintains its natural shape rather than being compressed against a hard surface.
That compression matters because it’s exactly what causes pressure ulcers. When bone presses skin and muscle against a firm seat, blood flow to that tissue drops dramatically. In a laser Doppler study measuring blood flow through skin, immersion in a ROHO Dry Floatation surface increased circulation to at least four times the baseline value. More blood flow means more oxygen reaching vulnerable tissue, which both prevents new wounds and helps existing ones heal.
Who Uses ROHO Products
ROHO cushions are designed for anyone at risk of pressure injuries from prolonged sitting or lying down. That includes people with spinal cord injuries, elderly individuals in wheelchairs, and patients recovering from surgery or illness who spend long stretches in bed. They’re also used by people who already have active skin breakdown, those with reduced sensation (who can’t feel when pressure is building), and individuals with pelvic asymmetry of up to about 2.5 cm who need their seating surface to accommodate an uneven pelvis.
The clinical evidence extends to serious wounds. In one documented case, a patient in long-term care with a Stage IV pressure ulcer on the tailbone (the most severe grade, where damage reaches muscle or bone) was placed on a ROHO Dry Floatation mattress system and a ROHO High Profile wheelchair cushion. The wound fully granulated and healed to closure within three and a half months.
Cushion Profiles and Configurations
ROHO cushions come in three main heights, each suited to different levels of risk and body type:
- High Profile: 4-inch (10 cm) air cells, offering the deepest immersion and greatest pressure relief. Typically recommended for people at the highest risk of skin breakdown or with existing wounds.
- Mid Profile: 3-inch (7 cm) air cells, a middle ground that balances pressure relief with stability.
- Low Profile: 2-inch (6 cm) air cells, providing less immersion but a more stable seating feel, often chosen when pressure risk is moderate or the user needs more trunk control.
Beyond height, cushions differ in how many air compartments they have. Single-compartment models have one connected air chamber, meaning air flows freely across the entire surface. The Quadtro Select line divides the cushion into four separate zones, each with its own valve. This lets a therapist or user fine-tune inflation in different quadrants, useful for someone whose pressure distribution is uneven due to a pelvic tilt or amputation. All three profile heights are available in the Quadtro Select configuration.
Setting the Right Inflation
A ROHO cushion only works properly if it’s inflated correctly. Too much air and you’re perched on top of the cells instead of sinking into them. Too little and you “bottom out,” with your bones pressing against the seat base underneath.
The standard method is a hand check. Once seated, someone slides a hand under the cushion beneath your lowest bony prominence (usually the sit bones). You should be able to feel the person’s fingertips slightly move, with roughly half an inch to one inch of air between bone and seat surface. If you can’t feel fingertips at all, the cushion needs more air removed. If there’s too much space, air needs to be added.
For people who check their own cushion without help, ROHO offers an electronic device called Smart Check. It attaches to the cushion’s valve port, and with the press of a button gives a simple readout: a green light means inflation is correct, a red down arrow means you need to let air out, and a red up arrow means you need to pump air in. This removes the guesswork from daily maintenance, which is important because cushion pressure can drift with temperature changes and normal use.
Materials and Maintenance
Most ROHO cushions in the Select and Single Compartment series are made from a proprietary neoprene rubber that is non-porous, meaning fluids and bacteria don’t absorb into the surface. The ROHO Mosaic, a more basic model, uses a polyvinyl material instead. Both types can be wiped down for infection control, which matters in clinical settings where cushions may be shared between patients or need regular sanitization.
Because ROHO cushions are air-filled rather than foam-based, they don’t break down or lose their supportive properties over time the way foam does. Foam cushions gradually compress and lose their ability to redistribute pressure, sometimes within a year. An air cushion, as long as it holds air and is inflated properly, delivers consistent performance. The tradeoff is that air cushions require more active management: you need to check inflation regularly, and a puncture renders the cushion useless until repaired.
Beyond Seat Cushions
While ROHO is best known for wheelchair cushions, the same air cell technology is used in full mattress overlay systems for hospital beds and home care. These overlays sit on top of an existing mattress and use the same interconnected cell design to immerse the body and relieve pressure across the back, hips, and heels. They’re typically prescribed for patients who are bedbound or at very high risk of developing pressure injuries across large body areas, not just at the sit bones.