Cut in the side of my Stoma

[Brindle]

Hi Everyone,

I just join the forum yesterday and I must have jinxed myself by doing so. LOL Last night I was changing my system and much to my surprise I had a cut in the side of my stoma. This is the first injury of any sort to my stoma since my operation in Oct 09.

I use a 2 piece Coloplast convex step up. The flange/ base plate must have shifted and come up off from the stoma base and cut into the side of the stoma. It had a little piece of Eakin seal in it, so i removed that and washed the area with clean water. There is no bleeding and just a little scraped mark and cut. Do i need to do anything like call the DR or just watch it?
Thanks so much for being just a post away.

 

[CDDad]

I have read that for a minor injury, you can just let it heal. If you are concerned, at least let a stoma nurse have a look.

Here is a link about some stoma injuries.
http://www.mountsinai.on.ca/care/ibd-for-patients/ostomy-care/stoma-complications

It looks like it is bad only if it won't stop bleeding. And warning, avert your eyes on the prolapsed stoma pic!

 

[Nyx]

I had a cut in the side of mine once as well. I just kept it clean and watched it. It healed up really quickly without any problems. As long as it's not looking infected or bleeding, I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[Jeff D.]

Sorry to hear about your cut. I'm sorry I don't have any info on how to deal with the cut. I hope it heals quickly.

 

[Guest]

i'd say the same as you've already been advised here... as long as it doesn't start to look swollen, infected, or it bleeds increasingly, it will probably just heal up on its' own. i've also had little injuries to mine from poor fitting flanges, and occasionally my fingernail's caught it when i've been cleaning the area... it bleeds for a little while, and that's it - it's healed by the next appliance change.

it's true that the stoma itself has no pain sensations.. so we do have to use our eyes to keep a check on how it's looking, particularly after a little cut like this... i'd advise you to change it in say 24 hours again, and see if it looks ok. if you're not sure, maybe a call to your stoma nurse might be an idea.

 

[Nyx]

@dingbat...it's funny that you mention that there's no sensation in the stoma...I can feel hot and cold on mine. My stoma nurse was shocked and did a little experiment on me. When I used to wear the one piece and had to clean it, I could always tell if she was using hot or cold water. She was amazed. I can also feel if it's pinching or not as well. It's weird....Oscar the amazing feeling stoma! lol