BED SORE

[angel00113]

Hi all, I've had a bed sore on my back side for nearly six mos.
The nurse 'packs' it daily. It's pain 24/7.

Does anyone have a clue how long these nasty sores actually
take to heal?

Any response will help.
It's better than none (which is what I currently get).

Thanks.
hugs, angel

[KoKo]

Hello Angel

A bedsore for 6 months does not sound good

It must be terribly painful for you.

I'm wondering - is it from sitting in the chair, or laying flat in the bed? I know the best and quickest way for an ulcer like that to heal is stay off of it, have no pressure on the area.

If in bed, can you be on your sides? And when in the chair, do they have a special cushion for you to sit on? Such as donut shape foam, alternating pressure, or gel?

It's best that the nurses/aids do what they can to prevent the sore from happening in the first place. Let's hope they prevent any more from developing.

Try your best to have your caregivers position you off of the sore to give it the best chance of healing faster.

Best wishes

Take care,
KoKo

[Jelmo99]

Hi Angel,
Sorry your going through so much. Bed sores can last a very long time, it depends on the proper healing process.

Do you know what they might be putting on it? there is a cream they can put on it (dont use anything like diaper cream tho it will keep it to moist, but dont allow them to cover it...it needs to get air to dry up and heal (like a scab).

Also if they are putting pads under you, what medical ppl call "chucks" for easier cleaning....either paper chucks or material chucks, also refuse them... they have a moisture barrier to them that helps any of your sheets from getting wet or soiled... which doesnt allow air to get to the wound,
also change positions frequently, or if you cant on your own, ask for help to move positions hourly. It is very time consuming, but you can get a very very bad infection if they arent taken care of properly and you dont need any more issues. Good luck, I hope this helps you heal a little faster.

[rdmc]

A wound vac can speed up healing of a bed sore. My mom had a stage 4 and with the wound vac it healed. Also there are special mattresses that inflate and deflate and aid in healing of the sores. It probably needs to be evaluated by a wound care nurse. Maybe your physician could write a script to have a wound care specialist come out and take a look.

[angel00113]

thank you

Ireally appreciate your responses although I do already have

some of these things. They gave me an air matress, they
always cover it with a "bandage" and I also have a special
cushion for my chair.

I've been to wound drs three times; they just pack it and let
me go.

As far as turning, I turn on my side (with help) as often poss-
ible for hours but it still isn't making any headway.

It's just another issue I don't need.

Thanks all.

hugs, angel

[bluegiraffe]

Angel - I hope you heal quickly -

I don't have much to add - would also like to learn more on how the sores can be prevented from occurring.


Is diaper cream not a good precautionary measure ?
what is a wound vac ?

Angel keep us posted on how you are doing.

[bluegiraffe]

Bed sores are really nasty.

I want to take this opportunity to post because I am in fact very concerned that I can be susceptible with my skin type.

I unfortunately do not move around much and spend too much time on the toilet (afraid of not making it) I put lotion on my skin to keep it supple.

My husbands grandmother had bedsores on her heels years ago and the doctors wanted to cut them off. His mother said no; that she would take her home and massage so the bedsores will go away.

All indications are that massage made them go away.

[Milhous]

I had burns but the some people that treated my burns also treated bedsores much the same way. my burns they had me scrub them until they bleed -- I did this with soap and water in a shower and one of those things from Walmart (like what people have for wedding veils) I was very Leary about doing that when I started but they healed nicely-- at first (2weeks I did it 2 times a day and then went to once a day until they were healed.)
I would then dry it put Silver Sulfadiazine cream on them and later Bacitracin Ointment -- covered with telfa pad and then had stretchy gauze like thing that went around my legs but it was basically allowed to the air (no tape)

they told me that it was important to have the bleeding as that helped get the blood flowing to the area -- so I could see were massage would help to.

I was amazed at how fast they healed you could see the progress daily at times as the wounds granulated in

Prayers go out to you and I do not know if this helps any but this was my experience with a wound healing.

[Jules A]

Please remember that all of our helpful suggestions might not be appropriate for you situation!

I wanted to add that depending on the wound having it exposed to air might not be possible or even the best way to treat it so I would continue trust that your health care professional knows what they are doing. If your nurse isn't a wound care nurse however I would definitely start seeing one that specializes in decubitus ulcers.

When I worked a spinal cord injury unit the recommendation was change of position every 15 minutes which is nearly impossible however even a slight shift will make a difference.

Hydration and nutrition are very important. Unless contraindicated often times an increase in protein is ordered so maybe a dietician consult would be helpful.

I guess the good news is that it is painful which indicates to me that the area is not totally dead and imo should increase your chances of healing. Sadly they take a very, very long time. Hang in there. Hugs, Jules

[kellygrn]

Add extra protein to diet

When your body is fighting to heal itself, it takes more protein that usual. Add a few scoops of protein powder & it might speed up the healing.

A friend had hers go down into the bone & had to have 4 inches of bone removed. Please be careful & keep smiling.

KK

[kebsa]

the comment that the suggestions we make here maynot suit your situation is very true as pressure sores vary widely as do other factors such as a persons body ability to heal. pressure sores are notorious for being slow to heal, even someone who only has unbroken but reddened skin can take longer than you might think as the tissue damage is actually more severe deeper in (usually)

the one comment i would disagree with is that you need to leave it open and let it "scab over" - that in most cases would be very unwise- there are many many different dressing products and regiemes around these days and in fact it can be said that wound care a nursing speciality in its own right. One thing i would encourage is to make sure that the nurse who is attended the wound care is experienced in that area rather- also remember that not all Doctors are experienced in the day to day management of problem wounds, it often takes a good partnership between the 2 to manage the care.

it is true that you need to fresh blood supply in the tissue for it to heal and many of the wound care products are aimed at keeping the area moist to encourage new tissue growth (a bit like the way the moisture inside a blister helps to allow damaged tissue to heal

you mention that the wound is being packed, which suggests that the wound is more than superficial, packing the wound (and this can be done in many ways with may products) is to encourage the sore to heal from the base upwards rather than sealing over the top, leaving a space beneath that may abscess or breakdown again. But sometimes if the wound is packed too firmly it can actualy slow healing down too (something an experienced wound care nurse would be aware of).

the suction closure pump was mentioned and for the right kind of wound, these are remarkable!! they tend to be for deeper wounds and basically they involvie a dressing the seals the area up, keeps it moist and then there is a suction tubing through the sealed dressing connected to a pump that draws away exudate and can help to draw the edges of the deeper sections of the wound together so that it speeds up the healing from bottom up- they are great options for the right kind of pressure sore

maintaining good general health, by good diet, adequate fluid, rest are also a factor- smokers tend to have slower healing than non smokers too!


advice on pressure relief aides is essential too, there are are many types of cushions for wheelchairs that can help, particularly help with prevention of more sores or relapse of an old one. The air mattresses that alternate pressure are good too and there are other options too- an experienced OT may be a good source of advice here as not only does the state of your current sore factor in but so does you mobility (including chair mobility), lifestyle, weight and even other things like if you have conditions like diabetes that make healing slower and risk of tissue damage higher.


if you can keep your weight of the area it will help, i know someone who has been struggling with a slow to heal bed sore and he likes to spend all day in his chair but he has no ability to shift his weight at all and developed a sore, after months of treatment it is healing but very slowly and it has now actually been suggested that it may take a period of complete bed rest with the correct type of air mattress for it to heal completely- it is important to also make sure that if you are tryong to deal with one are with a sore that you do not put other areas such as perhaps your hips at risk by spending too much time on those areas

any of us with limited mobility and limited sensation would be wise to have some one check out pressure points that are prone to breaking down- If they find any areas that are red and do not fade within a shor time when pressure is removed, that is possibly the early development of a pressure sore and good care at that time can prevent it from developing in most cases.

the risk of pressure sores is always there for those of us with poor mobility and it very definite that prevention is better than cure, it can take as little as a few hours to lead to a bed sore for some but then months and months for them to heal

many nurses will use digital cameras to help document healing and that is a good idea, as they heal slowly it can sometimes be demoralising as progress can be hard to see but just like when people are trying to lose weight and may not see the change when they look in the mirror each day, if you take photos seperated by time ( a few days or so) and compare them side by side then you can often see the progress if much better than you think

Many community nursing organisations that provide home care have a high level of expertiese in this area as they see far many of these types of wounds and tend to be involved in the care for the long term, so that may be somewhere to seek another opinion

don't lose hope, i have seen some devastatingly bad pressure sores, even down to bone, that have eventually been successfully healed- its just so frustrating that something that seems to happen relatively quickly can take such a long time to get rid off.

If you hvvae not done so already it may be worthwhile doing some of your own research on pressure sore prevention- to look at what you can do to decrease the risk of this sore from getting worse or from getting new ones elsewhere

goodluck and let us know how you go

[bluegiraffe]

What are some preventative methods to eliminate bed sores from occurring ?

Bed sores are really nasty.

I want to take this opportunity to post because I am in fact very concerned that I can be susceptible with my skin type.

I unfortunately do not move around much and spend too much time on the toilet (afraid of not making it) I put lotion on my skin to keep it supple.

My husbands grandmother had bedsores on her heels years ago and the doctors wanted to cut them off. His mother said no; that she would take her home and massage so the bedsores will go away.

All indications are that massage made them go away.

[angel00113]

ans; bed sore

kebsa, bluegirrafe,

Must make this short for this is the very thing that I shouldn't be doing-sitting up!
This IS more than a superficial wound; it's actually a hole
(another one, ha). The wound dr measured it.

The nurses want to keep it dry which is why they are actually
relieved (in a way) that now I had the urostomy because it
was an issue with the cathetar always leaking.

I will do more research on pressure wounbds but I ALWAYS
come here first.

Thanks to everyone w ho responed and am going to ly on
my side like a responsible person. I just had to read what
you guys had to say and thanks again.

big hugs, angel

[hart30]

Hi,

If you are unable to use a wound vac, another option that I have seen work wonders is a dressing called hydrafera blue.

It is an antimicrobial that also has a little bit of negative pressure to it, not a lot but enough to where if it is draining it collects the drainage and prevents bacteria from growing. It works well and encourages new tissue growth. The nurse cleans the wound with saline, then wets the hydrafera blue with normal saline, then applies the dressing and covers it with opsite to protect it and to hold it in place. It is expensive but usually insurance will pay for it, if you are in a Nursing home they have to pay for the dressings. Mention this to your wound nurse or doctor. It works better than just packing it with plain packing tape.

Hope this helps and heal soon! And yes the absolute best is to stay off of the area as much as you can!

[hart30]

Also....if the dressing stays intact and clean, it only has to be changed every 3 days.