Seeking Advice for Weeping Skin Around Ileostomy

Hello my dear ostomates!

I need some advice please. The skin around my ileostomy where my wafer sits has recently, out of the blue, developed water blisters. The skin is painful and weirdly itches, the flanges don't stick. I am going through 2-3 pouch changes daily because the skin is weeping and not dry enough for a wafer to stick for very long. I tried putting tegaderm over the area but it slides off. I have 2 brands of ostomy powder but I feel like they are making it worse. I'm trying to use the powder to absorb the wetness from the skin breakdown. I ran out of favorite skin barrier spray (Essentia) and using Brava and Cavilon spray (alternating). The skin breakdown is not from leakage. My skin is just getting so raw from a constant adhesive being there. Has anyone tried antifungal powder from the drug store? Any advice on what to do when nothing wants to stick to your skin? Do any of the companies make a wafer with adhesive for extra sensitive skin?

I hope this is as clear as mud! - trying to describe exactly what's going on! Look forward to hearing everyone's wisdom!

Any advice from my wonderful ostomates would be so appreciated...

Hello Drnjm.
I have not had this problem myself, but the subject has been raised many times on here with some very helpful replies.

Bob has probably covered the problems as well as anyone from both personal and a research perspectives, so May I suggest that you could benefit from reading some past posts by him ( & others).

They can be found in the 'COLLECTIONS' section (at the top of the page) then click on 'PREMIUM CONTENT' > GENERAL KNOWLEDGE > SKIN IRRITATIONS AND OTHER ISSUES.

 

I hope you find a solution soon!

Best wishes

Bill

Do you use a seal/ring between your appliance and skin? I and others use a Salts Aloe ring. It has aloe vera infused in it, and works very well for some.

Hmmm.........where is 'ostomate woundrn' when we need her? She takes a lot of breaks........must be union. :o(

Ok Drnjm.......blisters is not good. Our friend Jodie, the real-life ostomy nurse that I just previously mentioned, needs to chime in here, as she's probably dealt with your issue in real-life. I've had lots of angry weepy wet skin issues, but when you get blisters it's a sign of something else going on. There are a couple "rare" or "uncommon" culprits that cause blistering, like Pemphigus, but the most common I know of is a staph infection.....or Impetigo, which is bacterial in nature and requires you take an antibiotic to eradicate those little buggers. Most skin problems caused by a virus that tend to blister also tend to crust.......but it doesn't sound like you're seeing that......so I'm ruling that out.

If I were you I'd get some good pics over to your Doc via whatever portal they use and let them take a look. The aluminum acetate soaks (via Domeboro powder) I normally recommend for red weepy skin might help give you some temporary relief, but the second you put your barrier back on all hell's gonna break loose under it again. If you can't get to your Doc or a good Dermatologist you can put some pics up here, if you're brave, and I can see if anything looks familiar. If you're shy I can shoot you my email. But reach out to Jodie, aka 'ostomate woundrn' with a private message to get her take on what's going on. And tell her if she doesn't start paying better attention on here she's not getting that raise in pay we talked about! At least I think we talked about that..............

Seriously, give her a shout and let me know if you need more help!

;O)

I had a very bad skin issue recently, and went through a variety of different things that didn't work. What finally did was using the "Salts" brand of aloe-infused flange extenders, cut to the exact size of the problem area. You could also use a Salts barrier ring which is infused with aloe. This is a U.K. company and in Canada we have access to the products, but I'm not sure about the States. It's definitely worth checking out and it was the one thing that finally helped me. Good luck.

Terry

Words of Encouragement from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

The very best thing is to let your skin breathe for a while before affixing the new pouch. Longer is better, but even 10 minutes can do a world of good. Just be ready to deal with some possible rogue output - usually not that big of a deal if you have a plan in place.

Hello

Oh, how I feel for you. I had a lot of problems after my ileostomy.
If you feel you need more advice, maybe you could ask to see a skin specialist.

For my skin issues (which are many), I found using Aquacel Convatec Extra onto my sore skin and then using Duoderm Extra thin dressing (hydrocolloid dressing) on top. My flanges stick well.
Then the flange extenders for extra seal.
I hope it helps you.

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