I have a circulation problem that can lead to difficult healing of wounds. When I have a very stubborn one I must go to the doctor and have a bandage called a unnaboot that stays on for 3 to 5 days and told to not get it wet, which isn’t too hard when it’s 3 days. A shower before the doctor visit and the liberal use of diaper wipes and body powder you can still go out in public.
The trouble comes when it’s a 5 day wait between visits. The use a trashbag when you shower advice is all I’ve ever been given. And EVERY time I end up with a wet bandage. Every time. I’ve tried to tape below the knee, above the knee, elastic bands, duct tape, duck tape, adhesive tape and athletic tape. I tried double bagging, folding the top over the tape and tape that down.
It’s 2016. Surely by now SOMEONE has a better way?
I have a doctor appointment for a bandage change this afternoon and just took a shower. And yes the bandage is wet. Sure would like to take a shower this weekend and have a dry bandage after.
Anyone got a better way?
In a similar situation some years ago, I just used a big bowl of soapy water and a flannel. With a bit of help from my wife for the hard-to-reach bits, I was able to keep the bandages dry and myself smelling ok.
When I had a wound on my leg that needed to stay dry for a while, my solution was a shower chair in the tub, and another chair outside of the tub so that I could keep the foot elevated and out of the water. Then I did a combination of showering (with a hand held shower head) and sponge bath - soapy water from a bucket onto a part of my body, shower spray to wash the soap off. With the leg up, water didn’t drip down onto it, and with control over where I was putting the water, it didn’t get sprayed.
A couple of years ago, after rupturing my patellar tendon and the subsequent repair surgery, I had to wear an immobilizer brace pretty much 24/7 for months (they dialed out the ROM as PT went on).
I got one ofthese things to go over it while I showered. Worked beautifully; the only problem was that a sharp point on the brace poked a hole in the rubber membrane part. A piece of duct tape fixed that just fine though.
I don’t know exactly what size mine was- whatever size fits a 6’1" man up to nearly crotch level.
Last time I had my arm in a cast I stuck with baths. I don’t like baths, they take longer, use more water, and I don’t think they get me as clean. But my cast didn’t get wet.
I agree, the trash bag thing doesn’t work. Water gets in no matter what.
There are products out there specifically designed to keep a cast or bandage dry, I haven’t tried them before but they might work for you. Here are examples:
Yes, if your wound is chronic enough to require an Unna Boot, I’d suggest just getting one of the devices actually made for this purpose, like the Seal-Tight. It’s reusuable, so over time it’s not as expensive (per use) as it appears at first glance.
And, like most home health goods, it’s WAY cheaper at Amazon than from a medical supply company. The only reason to go through a medical supply company is if you have good insurance which will pay for it with a prescription - they’ll do the paperwork to file a claim for you. Otherwise, or if your copay is more than the Amazon price, you can order it yourself without a prescription.
I was in a similar situation the first week after my sprained ankle. My mother gave me a cast protector (similar to the ones linked above) that she had lying around - those things are wonderful. So simple, and they work so well. I highly recommend it.
Your sure water is getting in? When I’ve had to do this, it got damp because the hot shower water caused me to perspire inside the water prof covering.
Wrap plastic around the bandage as a shield from water, and then a towel around the leg over and above the plastic shield, and then the plastic bag to protect the towel from instantly becoming saturated. The idea is that the small leak goes into the towel and stays there.
The leg muscles change shape as you move around, and this will stretch elastic bands, and tape, and they aren’t tight and tensioned enough to squash the folds in the plastic down well enough .
So ideas to cure the gap at the tourniquet point …
a. Use latex, or excercise/sport style rubber rope (really stretchy …) or stretchy belts, to form a very strong torniquet … These materials will hold quite some tension while the leg muscles flex and change shape.
b. It is possible to coat the area where the bag has to be attached, with a grease or similar substance, since the grease sticks to both skin and plastic and is flexible… it holds the plastic onto the skin and seals the folds in the plastic.
c. Cut the plastic bag so its more of a sheet, and wrap the bag around and around in a spiral up the leg… so thats where the grease helps stick and there’s multiple seals in case of leaks.