Install bed rails using the manufacturer's instructions to ensure a proper fit.Confirm that the age, size, and weight of the person using the bed rails are appropriate for the bed rails used.Rails should be selected and placed to discourage climbing over rails to get in and out of bed, which could lead to falls.Check with the manufacturers to make sure the bed rails, mattress, and bed frame are compatible, since most bed rails and mattresses are purchased separately from the bed frame.Be aware that not all bed rails, mattresses, and bed frames are interchangeable and not all bed rails fit all size beds.This FDA-recognized international consensus standard establishes performance criteria for adult portable bed rails including resistance to entrapment. Check whether the adult portable bed rails you are using comply with ASTM F3186-17: Standard Specification for Adult Portable Bed Rails and Related Products.

The FDA recommends the following actions to prevent deaths and injuries from entrapment and falls from adult portable bed rails: Before you install bed rails: If your loved one is in a long-term care facility, make sure that a comprehensive assessment and care plan is in place before using bed rails (see information under Recommendations for Health Care Providers).Adult portable bed rails should not be used as a substitute for proper monitoring, especially for people at high risk for entrapment and falls.Alternatives include roll guards, foam bumpers, lowering the bed as near to the floor as possible, using concave mattresses that can help reduce rolling off the bed, or a bed trapeze to help reposition while in bed and to get in and out of bed. Consider other alternatives when bed rails are not appropriate.Additionally, people who are cognitively impaired from the use of medication or from a medical condition, such as Alzheimer's or dementia, Parkinson's disease, Multiple Sclerosis (MS), balance disorders, stroke, or low blood pressure (hypotension), are at a higher risk of entrapment and injury. High-risk people include those with pre-existing conditions such as confusion, restlessness, lack of muscle control, or a combination of these factors. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Room 820, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, MD 20814, telephone 30, email: or at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).Some people are at a high-risk for entrapment, falls or other injury from adult portable bed rails.

You may inspect a copy at the Division of the Secretariat, U.S.

You may obtain a copy of this ASTM standard from ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959 USA phone: 61 A read-only copy of the standard is available for viewing on the ASTM website at. The Director of the Federal Register approves the incorporation by reference listed in this section in accordance with 5 U.S.C. § 1224.2 Requirements for portable bed rails.Įach portable bed rail as defined in ASTM F2085-19, Standard Consumer Safety Specification for Portable Bed Rails, approved on November 1, 2019, must comply with all applicable provisions of ASTM F2085-19.

Portable bed safety rails