Taping access site, allergic reaction and itching

[marlinfshr]

Does anybody else here have issues with the island dressings and/or tape? It is really bothering me right now so I decided to ask. I guess I am allergic to the 4X5 island dressings. It leaves an itchy rash around the adhesive line. So I've switched to using just a 2X2 sponge taped with either the paper tape or the non-tear-able plastic cloth??? type. Well I'm down to using just the paper tape at the moment because the other type is starting to bother me as well. Of course the paper tape isn't the best at actually sticking. I also have minimal areas where I can put it without it going over top an area still rashed up from the other tapes and adhesives.

Has anybody else had similar issues? If so, have you found a type of tape that sticks and doesn't want to peel your skin off with it? Are there any creams or medication to relieve the itching? It gets unbearable at times. Of course it's usually at it's worst when I'm trying to get some sleep.

Now, I still haven't ordered any of the belts which I intend to but you still have to cover and tape the access site. Right?

[MaryD]

I've had the same problem.  We were issued with Primapore dressings which made me itch frantically.  So did another tape (Metfix??).  Now I use Uki-Ban  (?paper tape?) over the top of sterile gauze.  The sterile gauze is no longer sterile (but clean) by the time I get the tape onto it.

I use Stickman belts.  Some people only use the dressings when they are doing the monthly antibacterial ointment treatment.  I feel more comfortable with a dressing.

[Shaks24]

I use the stickman pd belt to support most of the catheter and transfer set. I use 1 strip of 3m microspore tape to tack down the catheter a couple inches from the exit site. This is for safety against tugs on the catheter. I also use a gauze 2x2 over the exit site tacked down with 2 small strips of the same tape. Sometimes the tape irritates my skin and I then remove it for a while and give myself a break.  I wash the exit site daily in the shower with antibacterial soap and apply antibacterial ointment daily.

[amanda100wilson]

I stopped taping mine altogether when I was doing PD and just stuck the catheter inside my underwear.  My exit sute was always great and never got infections.  Others that have done the same have had similar results.  In my view the skin gets chance to breathe and evaporate sweat, and so is actually healthier.  You just need to support the tube in some way, mine was in my underwear, but something like the Stickman belt can work well too.

[Joe]

I just use the stickman belt, no tape and no gauze. I do keep the area clean and do my exit site care daily after my shower - or any time I get it wet. I had the same problem with constantly taping the site up and it was driving me crazy. stopped the tape, and no more problem.

[Weggy]

I use the carriage house PD t-shirts as an undershirt without tape or gauze since April of this year. No issues at all, in fact I think my exit site is doing better than it was before. I bought the shirts so I could stop using tape because I am a hairy guy and the tape was tearing my hair out.

[Joe]

Weggy, that's what drove me to the stickman belts. Got really tired of tearing the hair off every time I pulled tape.

[marlinfshr]

Thanks for the reply's. I guess I should order a few belts and try it without tape for a bit.

[JLM]

I tuck my catheter into my bra.  Should I tug my catheter I apply a little cream to a 2x2 and a 4x4 piece of 3M Micropore.  It's pricey , but I don't have to use it often.  It  come off gently and does not irritate my skin

[Charlie B53]

Yes, it is an old thread, but the subject is always applicable to everyone on PD, actually anyone that wears bandaging.

My cath comes out my chest.  I use a stickman belt and always cover my site with a 2X2. 

Initially we had a problem as my skin is sensitive to most tapes, they either leave a red rashy area or just peel my skin off with the tape.  Alos, I sweat, so if something isn't really taped down well, it just slides off.

My Nurse has Cover-Roll Stretch tape, 4 inch, from Germany, it is a sorta woven, porous so the skin can breathe.  We did have to use an adhesive prep pad during the summer to stop the sweat from making the tape come loose but I started getting water blisters on the skin at the top side of the bandage under the tape, never on the bottom, only the top.  It was nasty as the blister would form under the tape and when taking off the tape it would literally peel the bubble of skin off. 

The solution we found was stop using the adhesive prep and instead use , forgot the name now, betedine wipes.  Wipe the area the tape will be on with betedine, let air dry, then apply the tape.

Replace the bandageing every day/time it gets wet, and use a small dab of the anti-biotic creme, just in case.

We have pets, and G'kids, I never know what 'bugs' can be lurking on their hands.

Never a problem since.