Feeding tube healing

[Carolina76]

My husband had a feeding tube on August 10th. It is there only for precaution now and he does not have to use it. However, I don't think it is healing as well as it should. It's been a little over 2 months and every morning it is bloody. I flush it daily and clean it but I just feel like the blood should be stopped by now. The doctors say it looks great but they don't see it right after he first gets up in the morning.
Are there others who have experienced this?

 

[Statius@]

I didn't have bleeding after the initial surgery, but after they replaced the original "stopper" with a balloon we had daily blood seepage, much as you describe. The GI drs were no help, ascribing the bleeding to my taking blood thinner. My PCP described the condition as hypoplasia of the skin tissue. Recently they used silver nitrate and replaced the tube with a MICkey, which has reduced but not eliminated the seepage. It's been very frustrating.

Ed

 

[lgelb]

Diane, one of our members, has what may be a helpful page on this.

 

[affected]

Silver nitrate is normally used to reduce any proud flesh around the stoma.
Does he have any pain at all? Any seepage of stomach contents?
If not and it's just a bit of crusty blood, you may find all is fine.
I always cleaned the stoma with saline a few times a day, and put a very small smear of barrier cream on the skin around the stoma.
Often there was a rusty colour as I cleaned, not always.
If there is no pain, heat, redness or swelling, I would just routinely clean it.

 

[Firefighter58]

I have had a tube for about 6 years now and there is always some leakage but it should not be blood., just a little spot of crusty matter in the morning. If it still bleeding there is a problem I think.
Al

 

[getstevewell]

I have another question about feeding tubes. How does everyone hold their tube up? Just tape? Do you let it hang? Just curious. Tape is working now, but the skin gets irritated after awhile. Let me know. Thanks.

 

[Nikki J]

paper tape ( because it is easier to remove) around tube ,safety pin through tape and shirt. There are similar sturdier things you can buy that do the samething

 

[affected]

We used paper tape, but I alternated where I placed the tape each time I replaced the tape to prevent it irritating the skin.
In the long run a button type of tube will be the better, have they discussed changing out to a button?

 

[JimInVA]

Darcey had her feeding tube for about 6 years. She let it hang as she was not able to stand and move on her own. Her tube area (some have called this the "stoma") would sometimes be crusty, sometimes bloody and sometimes clean as a whistle. Every morning, it would get twirled and then cleaned (either with saline solution or with peroxide if it was bloody), wiped with a tissue and triple antibiotic ointment (or nothing) put on it.

I don't know if any of that helps, but that's our history.

My best...

Jim

 

[rnewton60]

I can only speak to my experience with a stomach tube. I had a dangling 18 inch tube hanging from my tube. I taped it up but I only had the long tube for about six weeks. I then asked my doctor if they could put a tube in that would be near flush to my skin. They told me they didn't recommend that because it may come out. I insisted they do it and they did and I am thrilled with the result. I know have a flush button on my lower chest that works just fine. The bleeding cleared up in the first week then I have a few days scattered over the last year where the tube will leak blood from around the hole. I inform my doctor and they always say the same thing. Wait and if it happens two days in a row, let us know. No need to worry about the intermit leakage of blood. And I use Butt Paste due to the high zinc oxide concentrate of 40% to dry it out if the skin gets too irate and I use Neosporin if it looks like it needs it. In fact, I use Neosporin after a shower then I use Butt Paste right before I go to bed and the hole looks fine 99% of the time.