The ideal appliance will fit in a way that protects your skin while also providing a durable, and secure fit. Unfortunately, not every ostomate can achieve this balance so easily, so many will experience a breakdown of skin around the stoma.
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This happened to me a short while after getting my ostomy, as my new stoma was still shrinking down from its swollen state.
I was quite inexperienced, so rather than change my appliance more often, I’d try to get 5+ day wear time, which meant that as my stoma became smaller, it left room for my output to eat away at my skin.
As you can see from the photos below, I had fairly deep erosion of the skin, and it hurt a lot. At the time, I had used the “crusting technique”, which involves putting stoma powder on the exposed, raw part of my skin, dust it off and apply a barrier using either barrier wipes or cavilon spray.
You do this a few times to build up protection on the skin, and to allow the wafer to stick to something other than the powder. This technique does work for many people, but it worked very slowly for me.
More recently, as I’ve been in between wafer samples, I began to get more breakdown of the skin.
I attempted to remedy this using the crusting technique, but I wasn’t getting the results I wanted; so instead, I opted to simply use a barrier ring without any powder or barrier wipes.
The results impressed me, and my skin has probably never looked that good around the stoma.
And here’s another example of how quickly this method can heal damaged skin:
Now, I continue to use a barrier ring when I notice more breakdown of the skin. I may continue to use them more regularly, but they are quite expensive and I’m not done trying new appliances that might offer a better fit.
Here’s a video showing how I change my appliance, including how I use barrier rings.
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Caution: Before you change your routine, you should check with your stoma nurse first, unless you’re willing to experiment on your own.
INFO: If you’re interested in the “crusting technique” for healing peristomal skin, check out THIS article.
QUESTION: What techniques have you tried to heal up your skin?
Hi Gemma, As Eric has said getting a stoma nurse/ medic to have a look is important, even in these strange times there are still ways to do this. Can you think of when things changed and what maybe differently he has been doing. Could he be putting the wafer on sitting and then it’s causing it to pull when standing.their is always a reason and always a solution. Keep in touch and best wishes 👍
My husband had his done 2 years ago now and it really bleeds when he changes his bag like the skin has split and he has been using the crusting method with no joy i sent him yr video as I just want him to not bleed really to have healthy skin around his stoma .
Hi Gemma, that must be alarming for you and your husband. If the skin is separated, I do recommend that he have a stoma nurse have a look. Does he play sports or do a lot of physical work? When he makes a hole in his wafer, does he leave it a little larger than his stoma or is it a tight fit? Either of those can cause bleeding. Good luck.
@Gemma SMITH Can you contact a stoma nurse? It can be hard to actually see someone in person these days but even oven getting on t he phone might get things started as we move towards “elective” surgeries (in our state they began to do these again just a few days ago). Eric mentioned barrier rings, for some relief. I have recently started using CeraRings which are soothing to my skin, which was irritated (though not like your husband’s – I am so sorry he is experiencing this misery) and occasionally bled at one edge of the stoma, where the stitches had been. They are helping quite a lot. I hope things resolve soon for your husband and he feels much better.
ps – A little applesauce can gently thicken output – he might try it if he hasn’t already.
My son had his ostomy since oct 17,2019 and it has been really hard for him to keep the rash away and alot of leakage.what can i do?
@Joyce dillihay
Hi Joyce, I’m sorry to hear that your son is having problems. Depending on what the rash is, it may need to be treated with a medicated product.
I would highly suggest having him see a stoma nurse to asses his skin.
Rashes can be an allergy, irritation, or fungal infection, it’s important that he knows what’s causing it so he can treat it effectively.
Good luck.
My name is JoAnn and I had a lot of irritation and it itched so bad and I didn’t know what was happening. My ostomy is a few months old and I called my ostomy nurse and she told me to try nasal spray (any kind) and see if that works for me and so I did and I was so relieved. She told me it is an old remedy that has been around a while. It truly works. I now keep it on hand always. Give it a try and good luck.
When would I use the liquid skin protectant?
@Valarie
Hi Valarie, this article may be helpful: https://www.veganostomy.ca/guide-to-ostomy-barrier-wipes/
Skin protectants aren’t usually required except under specific cases. I prefer wipes or I’ll spray some proectant on a gauze pad and dab it on my skin, usually in conjunction with stoma powder.
I use Marathon liquid skin protectant regularly as I get skin maceration but no leakage. I have an ileostomy and my stoma changes shape considerably depending on if lying down or standing up. It goes so low when lying on my left side that I can’t wear a barrier. The skin protectant lasts 3 days on me.
I clean the area good and put the nasal 6on with gauze and let it dry and apply the ring and then put everything else back on as usual. I don’t use anything else, just the nasal spray.
Is the drainage from a surgical fistula?
@veganostomyHi Eric, I meant to say I had a proctectomy and my drainage is from that area of where they closed the rectum and anus. I have since called the surgeon and they said I might always have this drainage or it could go away. ( I do not have a fistula at this time). By the way I have tried today with the aloe vera gel on my inflamed peristomal skin. I will let you know if it help healing.Thanks,Kevin
@dieffenk
Ah, I thought that’s what you might have been referring to.
Good luck with the aloe! I’ll be interested in knowing how that goes.