Hello there :-)

[nicole1991]

Hi there,

I'm Nicole I'm 22 and have been an amputee since I was 13!
I had one leg shorter then the other when I was born, I also had a lot of hip complications which made the situation worse!!
After years of trips to and from the hospital for leg lengthening, hip replacements etc i was given the option to either carry on with the operations or to amputate. As you guessed I chose the amputation route haha....
I do have a few questions that I would like to ask you fellow amputees, if you could respond it would be greatly appreciated!

At the moment I'm going through a really bad time, I'm ongoing tests for crohns, I'm constantly run down which is resulting the abscesses where the top of my leg stops in the groin area, also the whole of my stumped leg is red raw and so very itchy and I just don't know what else to do, I take baths with dry skin bath lotion, I smother my leg in sudocreme, I've also tried e45 and hydromol ointment.
Any advice would be very much appreciated!

Thank you
Nicole

[snowyh]

Hi, Nicole. Sorry to hear that you're going through a rough patch right now. I'm an arm amputee and don't wear a prosthesis, so I can't offer you any advice for your current situation, but I'm sure you'll hear from other members soon. Glad to have you in the forum!

Helen

[allenuk]

Hello Nicole.

Just to echo what Helen wrote - welcome, but sorry you're up against it at present.

Our community here usually manages to offer advice, eventually, but it might take a little time. Have you posted on other boards? Worth a try, just in terms of spreading your net a bit wider - not trying to lose a member before she's even started, just thinking of best courses of action for you!

With all good wishes,


Allen.

[nicole1991]

Hi guys,

Thanks very much for the warm welcome :-)!

Ill have a go at posting on the other bits and bobs around the site, thank you for your advice!

Nicole

[cherylm]

Hi, Nicole, and welcome to our little "family." Sounds like you're an above-knee amputee, based on your description of where you're getting the abcesses...?? That does not sound pleasant at all! I don't know much about Crohns, is that likely to be something that could increase your skin sensitivity? Also, do you have any new prosthetic components that are touching your skin...or have you changed any products that you use to clean your components? A new detergent for washing a stump sock? Or a major change in how your prosthesis fits?

I'm grasping at straws here, but when I've had problems with redness, rawness, and/or itchiness, it's almost always the result of some new ingredient in a cleanser or lotion, or else something has has physically changed about my stump (usually shrinkage, in my case) to alter the fit of my prosthesis and create stress from the friction.

You have my sympathy...that's a lousy (and very challenging) problem to try and sort out!

[ann-]

Hi Nicole, sorry to hear that you are going through such a difficult time at the moment. I am more than slightly older than you but did also become an amputee just before my thirteenth birthday, so feel we have something in common.

As others have also said, have no knowledge about crohns disease, but do know that any skin problems do make things very uncomfortable and difficult for us amps, as you are finding. Personally any skin issues or breaks in skin on my legs I have these days which doesn't look like resolving itself in a few days I get looked at by my GP, and when that treatment hasn't really sorted out the situation, I have pushed for referral to a dermatologist. Usually I have found the Dermatologist can usually tell what the problem is by just looking at things, often something they have given me has sorted the problem in days and I have wondered why I didn't see them sooner. Also perhaps remind all the doctors you are seeing about the skin problems and about the crohns investigations, remind them about anything you are taking or using on your leg, you'd like to think they all communicate with each other, but sometimes they forget.

Maybe also think about anything which you have done differently with regards the leg recently, have you had a new liner, have you washed anything in a different washing detergent, have they changed anything different in the prosthesis, used any glue (that can really irritate), etc., there is probably a whole host of things that could irritate when wearing a prosthesis and most of us encounter some sort of irritation now and again.
I find myself that any air or creases that get between sleeves and liners, and uncomfortable edges of the prostheses can all set me off itching, very easily.

Regards lotions, I must admit I am really careful what products I use on my legs, some that contain lanolin don't agree with me, so these days I get prescription based moisturising lotion from my GP. The other thing I do is always bathe and moisturise at night, that way it has sunk in by the time I put the liner and prosthesis on again in the morning, if you are using liners with your leg, some of the lotions can react with the liner.

Do wish you lots of luck and take a tip from someone like me who has learned the hard way over stuff like this, if things don't resolve quickly then you really do need to get more input from a doctor.

[nicole1991]

Hey guys,

Wow thank you so much for all the info!
I defiantly think you are on the right lines Cheryl and Ann, I've recently changed my prosthetic back to my old one as I broke my day to day leg....whoops! The rashes and itchiness has only started since I changed back to my old one so maybe it just doesn't fit as well as my usual leg?

I've been double dosing my antibiotics for the abscesses and it seems to be helping! But I would still rather go get them lanced so their gone for good!
I am also undergoing tests for Crohns had an MRI yesterday, fingers crossed that there is nothing wrong!!!
Thanks again for all your advice, ill get my self booked in to limb unit to get my leg fixed and hopefully that will stop the sore problem!

Nicole x

[SteveInMd]

Mar 8, 2014 17:43:27 GMT -7 nicole1991 said:

Hi there,
<snip>
the whole of my stumped leg is red raw and so very itchy and I just don't know what else to do, I take baths with dry skin bath lotion, I smother my leg in sudocreme, I've also tried e45 and hydromol ointment.
Any advice would be very much appreciated!

Thank you
Nicole

Hi, Nicole. Welcome.
I've had an episode of "red, raw, and itchy" myself. In my case, it seemed to have been from not sufficiently rinsing the inside of my silicone liner enough after washing it. We all need to be careful to make sure there's no kind of substance on our skin or on the inner surface of the liner that doesn't have to be there. The warmth and moisture under the liner makes it very easy for substances to penetrate into the skin, where there wouldn't necessarily be any reaction of the skin anywhere else.

Soaps react with ions in water to leave soap "scale" -- the liner and skin should be cleaned with things other than soap. I use a dish detergent rather than bar soap, and rinse thoroughly. You could also use rubbing alcohol. But definitely let things dry out overnight before putting the liner back on.

Keeping bacteria levels down can also be important. I wipe my stump down every night with a wet antiseptic wipe. You could use rubbing alcohol or Dakin's solution. Dakin's solution ingredients might seem like something you wouldn't want on your skin, but I've used gallons of the stuff over years of taking care of my diabetic foot ulcers (which are gone now, due to absence of the problematic foot). It's meant for wound care, so it's fine for intact skin too, if you let it dry before putting your liner on.

Now, stuff like alcohol and Dakin's can be drying. But as I see it, the liner doesn't breathe, so the skin underneath stays damp-ish all day long. So I never use a moisturizer there. But if you feel a need, I suggest pure mineral oil (baby oil) or even Vaseline (petrolaturm). Skin reactions to these are very rare.

Intense itching might merit a cortisone-type cream, and State-side here we might use over-the-counter 1% hydrocortisone cream. But I'd strongly recommend a doctor's visit before using kind of medicated cream on the area.

I hope some of this helps --

Steve