pressure sore

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john485

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Aug 6, 2011
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Learn about ALS
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ky
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hodgenville
i am wheelchair bound and i have what looks like the beginnings of a sore on my heal. it first was real sore and red so i put my legs up with no pressure at all on it and it seemed to be getting better. so i put my feet back down on a soft pad for a day or two and now theres a hard disk where the sore was and looks like the skin might want to come off. i put my feet back up what else should i be doing? any medicine i should be useing?
 
John, try ointments containing Zinc Oxide--a "Barrier Cream" often has it. And keep your feet in either fake or real wool fleece heel cups all of the time. My heel began breaking down years ago from not moving it in bed. Sheep fleece or fake has kept it from reocurring.
 
And watch it very, very closely. Mine went from a red spot to the bone in a very short matter of time. See a doctor if it seems to break the skin (especially if you have the complication of diabetes)

I spent months in a special cast thing until it healed.
 
Joel swore by sugar!

See the thread listed below (in the similar threads box), entitled, "Question about pressure sore."

Oh, Joel used to be a moderator on this forum. Sadly, he is no longer with us. He has a website that is still up that provides lots of tips. If I can find the link, I'll post it for you.

Welcome to the forum.
 
both of my posts have disappeared again!

I understand if there is a link, but I will try this again using different words:

A former member advised using sugar. If you scroll down you will find other posts regarding sores. See the third one down with 6 replies.
 
My husband is fighting breakdowns on his bottom. This is unusual for ALS unless of course it is long term like it is for him. He has been using a wheelchair for at least 13 years, maybe more. I have lost track.

The strange thing is that one day they are there, the next day they are healed, you think it's ok then there back again worse than ever. So please continue to take care even if it seems like they have healed.
 
Here's what we teach students. There are 4 stages of bedsores. Stage 1 is red skin. Stage 2 is the first layer is broken down stage 3 several layers of skin are gone and stage 4 is to the bone.

THe area with redness needs protected until all signs of redness are gone. It's much more difficult for those that aren't able to be positioned every two hours for whatever reason. Heel pads are good as suggested.

The danger of bedsores is sepsis from compromised immune systems. The one on my heel took only a week to get to the bone and started with a red spot the size of a dime and was the size of a silver dollar when it finally started to heal--and to this day has not completely healed--but then, I also have diabetes
 
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