Pressure sores if allowed to develop and not carefully managed can become large and deep. They can easily become infected because they contain dead skin & flesh. If a sore reaches the bone (which it often does), it can become infected. Bone infections are very hard to cure & may last for years. Infections in deep pressure sores often get into the blood and affect the whole body causing fever and general illness. THIS CAN EVEN LEAD TO DEATH. In fact, pressure sores are one of the main causes of death in persons with spinal injury.