Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Frustration with the granulation

Say that five times really fast...

So this granulation business is really getting old. V's first attempt at a g tube was a multiple disaster so I really don't know how long the granulation tissue is supposed to hang around in a "normal" stoma.

... i just wrote "normal"....

he he.

A few weeks ago I finally burned off the last of it with some silver nitrate, and now it's back with a vengeance.

When you look at his stoma, the worst of it is on the left side. It's something like a big red sticky flesh donut.

We have the big guns steroid cream and that helps but I don't like to use it too much. Steroids can be tricky. Helpful in the right amounts, and hurtful if you use too much. Too much can actually cause the skin around the stoma to thin. Something we definitely don't want.

So silver nitrate has become by backup crutch. Fortunately if I wait till he's asleep and dab it gently he never even flinches, but the idea of gently dabbing something on my baby that comes out of a package with a skull and crossbones on it that says POISON in big red letters, just doesn't make me feel all warm and fuzzy about using it.
Then after a couple of days it comes back!!!

I'm still experimenting with the holistic approach. I've gotten alot of advice on essential oils and creams but i'm reaching the desperation point here.

Don't get me wrong, i'm more than excited to be on the "normal" side of things. I'll take this problem anyday over what we dealt with before, but big fleshy skin donuts be damned!!!

... ok I feel better now :)

5 comments:

  1. Man maybe you need to have that boy tested for some wierd skin growing problem. maybe he just grow tissue:0 I have no thoughts, Jax g-tube had granulation tissue when we first got it, but its been beautiful ever since. Now I'm worried about some tissue around his trach. We put silver nitrate on it but it only took off a top layer, the tissue is still there. GGrrr

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  2. Absolutely loved your blog title!!! Had a good giggle, exactly what I needed this morning.
    Just a thought regarding the granulation tissue issue - is V's button tight enough? My "last round" of granulation tissue started to appear when my balloon started to fail and my button consequently was too loose against my skin - I know that a bit of pressure from the button against the skin helps to stop the tissue growing.

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  3. Good thought, I may try adding a cc of water and tighten it up a bit. Can't hurt.

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  4. That IS a thought...I think LC's may need to sized up or something...all of a sudden it's not staying put and for the first time I'm noticing some growth issues, too...hmmmmmmmmmm.

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  5. I have no idea because I am new to this but wishing you luck. I have heard about some natural things like collodial silver and calendula cream but I have no research behind it. Hugs.

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