Showering

[KICKSTART]

Its seems alot of you on PD shower rather than take a bath? I was told you could have a shallow bath but not let the water come up to the level of the catheter.So now i have a shower.. what method do you use ? I have been told there are waterproof catheter covers you can use . What do you do when you take a shower? Remove dressing? Leave it on? Use special soap?

[kellyt]

I met a couple at my transplant evaluation and he has a chest catheter.  His wife told me that she uses the Press and Seal wrap and then he holds a dry towel over that while she washes his back and such.  She swears by it.   Good Luck!

[rookiegirl]

After my 6 weeks checkup.  They  examined my exit site to see if its ok to shower.  They told me to remove all the dressing and anchor the cath so it doesn't tug on the exit site.  What I have been doing is remove all my dressing and use plastic tape to anchor my cath.  I shower as normal and at the end I take the square gauze, pump some anti-bacterial soap that were both given to me at the clinic.  I wipe the area just like I was told when I use to change my dressing (NORTH/SOUTH/EAST/WEST).  Once I finish soaping up the area, I let the water from the shower head run down to rinse it off.

When I get out, I use another gauze to wipe it dry.  Same method (N/S/E/W).  I let it air dry while I get ready and before I put on my clothes, I place a dressing on top.  I don't have to dress it anymore, but it feels more comfortable for me because they placed my cath right where I normally wear my pants.  So therefore it rubs too much and it gets irritated.  I don't like to wear low-riders.

[Marvin]

I've had two Tenchkoff caths (for PD) and 14 perm caths (in chest for hemo) over the last 13 years -- obviously, not all at the same time.  I have always showered!  I'd do those wonderful "bird baths" to start with, and then, after the exit sites were healed (for me, a couple of days or so), I would wrap the caths with Saran Wrap and tape securely.  I would wash as usual, but I'd try not to let the shower head spray directly on my caths.  I didn't use any special soap.  After the shower, I'd dry the Saran Wrap (because water always splashed on it) with the towel and then remove it.  I'd dry the exit site with gause and then clean the area around my cath with bedidine and a special cream (bacitracin).  For the perm caths, the techs/nurses at the clinic would tape the ends and initial them, and I became quite good at removing their taped ends before my shower and then putting them back on afterwards.  I also became good at replacing the taped ends if I did mess them up while taking off.  Some of my doctors frowned on showering, and some others said as long as I kept it dry and cleaned it good afterwards, it was okay.  I never had an infection at a catheter site.  I have had friends (both PD and hemo) who were afraid to shower and went years without one (but they did bathe, thank goodness).

[goofynina]

When you have the neph's ok to shower, i was told to remove all dressing (which i use none) and wash the area with antibacterial wash, i dont bathe but i do go swimming in a pool (go figure) lol,  But all done with the ok from the PD staff. 

[KT0930]

I do the same as goofynina. I never use a dressing, I just tape my tenkhoff up out of the way during the day. For showering, I untape it and let it hang. I use Dial Antibacterial on the exit site. My PD nurse was very clear that I MUST use it from a pump bottle and I cannot refill the bottle, must buy a new one when it gets empty, so I buy the big, industrial size (35 oz) at Sam's Club. I then let it airdry as I'm drying the rest of my body and getting dressed. Occasionally if it gets a little icky (scabs or red, but no infection), I'll wipe it once or twice a day with an alcolhol pad. I was told no baths, but swimming in a privately owned pool that I trusted the owner's cleaning ability, or the ocean was ok.

[KICKSTART]

Hmm seems everyone gets told different things ! I was told to remove dressing , shower as normal ..no antibacterial soap , then clean and replace dressing as i would do normally! Any of you in the  can tell me what you do? I know we have different products here to what the majority of you use!

Marvin .. i love that comment about 'bird baths'   

[Ken Shelmerdine]

I leave the old dressing on during showering and remove after I've dried of. I clean the area with betadine (horrible stuff) dab it off add bactroban cream and then dress it. I was told I could swim in a chlorinated pool but not in the sea.

[Chicken Little]

I shower.  I remove the dressing and wear my patients pride belt into the shower to keep the catheter secured.  I wash, then at the end of the shower I wash the site with Endure soap (which is the medicine smelling stuff they have you wash with before a surgery) and a gauze pad.  Then I pat it dry with another gauze pad, change into a new patients pride belt and apply Gentamicin before I bandaging. 

When I had a permacath, I washed my hair in the sink and used a handheld shower to wash from the chest area down and disposable Johnson's Baby Washcloths to do my chest, arms and shoulders.

[KICKSTART]

Thanks all , that was another thing i was going to ask ..do you do your hair in the shower? that means using shampoo plus i would expect all the dirt running down your body from your hair, (i know my hair is not really dirty, but you know what i mean!)

[Chicken Little]

I absolutely wash my hair in the shower.  I hated having to wash it in the sink when I had the permacath.  I never felt clean.   

I always finish up by cleaning the site with the medicinal soap, but I'm not concerned about shampoo and bodywash running onto it. 

[KICKSTART]

Excellent .. thanks .. wow isnt it a lot of fuss doing stuff other folk just take for granted ! One thing i miss is a nice long soak with plenty of bubbles !!!

[Ken Shelmerdine]

Thanks all , that was another thing i was going to ask ..do you do your hair in the shower? that means using shampoo plus i would expect all the dirt running down your body from your hair, (i know my hair is not really dirty, but you know what i mean!)

I wash my hair in the shower, whats left of it! 

[rookiegirl]

Thanks all , that was another thing i was going to ask ..do you do your hair in the shower? that means using shampoo plus i would expect all the dirt running down your body from your hair, (i know my hair is not really dirty, but you know what i mean!)

I wash my hair in the shower, whats left of it! 

Me too.  I shampoo/condition my hair in the shower and so far no problem.  My nurse told me this is okay to do.

[Rerun]

Use the press and seal wrap and then silk tape to cover all around it so no water gets in.  Then try to avoid direct shower spray on the area. 

There was no way I was not going to take a shower!  Where there is a will there is a way.

[KICKSTART]

Use the press and seal wrap and then silk tape to cover all around it so no water gets in.  Then try to avoid direct shower spray on the area. 

There was no way I was not going to take a shower!  Where there is a will there is a way.

Hi Rerun thanks for that but in  so dont know what press and seal tape is or if we have it here?

[muddled]

kickstart.....could stick and seal be tegaderm?

http://images.google.co.uk/images?gbv=2&svnum=10&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=tegaderm&spell=1

[KICKSTART]

kickstart.....could stick and seal be tegaderm?

http://images.google.co.uk/images?gbv=2&svnum=10&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=spell&resnum=0&ct=result&cd=1&q=tegaderm&spell=1

Aha thanks , i think i will have to ask at my doctors about it , see if i can find out more.!

[Chicken Little]

I wouldn't stress about keeping your PD cath shielded from water.  Permacaths are different.  It's a direct line to your blood and heart and infections can rapidly become fatal.   My doctors were adamant about not getting my permacath wet, but showering and swimming (in pools or the ocean) are OK with the PD cath.  I was told the reason they don't want baths is that germs tend to be prevalent in home tubs.   

[alrightstill]

I haven't been on PD in years, but what I used to do was shower with the old dressing on and change it immediately after getting out.  I also used one of those nettings to keep the cath secure.  (Do they still have them?)

Now I have a permacath and what I do is put (2) 4x4 tegarderms over my old dressing (I put the 1st teg on as close to the bottom of the lines as possible without completely covering the end caps + the second one gets layered over the top of the 1st one and reaches up to cover the dressing).  This technique has been working for me for years - and when I get out and take the tegaderms off - my old dressing is always dry.  I of course, immediately change the dressing post shower and just clean the area with alcohol, as bedadine makes me itchy.   

[River]

I have been showering since a week after my PD catheter was placed, with my neph's permission. In fact, he wants me to shower every day. I use Dial antibacterial liquid soap to wash my exit site and catheter tube, then cover the exit site with a 2x2 gauze dressing held in place by paper tape. The only time I tape the catheter end in place is when I'm in the shower, and I use paper tape for that, too.

I remember reading Rookiegrrl's posts before I got the catheter placed and mentally preparing myself to not be able to shower for 6 weeks. To my surprise, they let me shower with no real restrictions after a week and a day. I wash and condition my hair in the shower.

[KICKSTART]

i have managed to track down a waterproof dressing today which my renal unit have told me to use and NOT to get my exit site wet!!! Great how things vary!

[rookiegirl]

i have managed to track down a waterproof dressing today which my renal unit have told me to use and NOT to get my exit site wet!!! Great how things vary!

KICKSTART,

Why can't you get your exit site wet? 

[KICKSTART]

I was told that when the area around the exit site gets damp and humid, thats when the chances of infection are higher!