Irritated Skin Near Belly Button

Hi, I don't have an appliance leak, but sometimes the skin near my belly button gets irritated and oozes. I guess it's from the cloth/tape on my ostomy appliance causing it. So I pulled it up a bit so the skin can breathe. Does anyone have this issue too? Should I put some stoma powder there? Any tips, please?

Hi all, I think everyone with a stoma has experienced this at some point. Over the course of the day, your abdomen expands slightly, causing the outer part of the baseplate to pull against your skin a little more. And if the baseplate has a plaster border, this can irritate it even more. You can treat minor wounds with stoma powder, but I would recommend using a barrier spray occasionally.

Use the barrier spray around my belly button?

Use stomapowder first and then use the barrier spray on your skin (wait until it's dry) under the stoma appliance.

If this is at the edge of your appliance, then cutting the tape in that area and allowing the skin to breathe will help.

If cutting the tape would compromise your seal, then crusting stoma powder with barrier wipes should help.

I've also used the crusting technique with Desonex when I thought there was a fungal infection. So use what makes sense to you. But air exposure would help regardless of the source.

All good advice.

I'm a relative newbie with leaking issues, and I agree with what others have said. Stoma powder helps, and for an adhesive, my wound care nurse recommended a product called Skin-Tac, available on Amazon. It's very sticky, and I apply it after powder. I've had to have the skin at the base of my stoma cauterized for bleeding several times. The nurse also recommended Domeboro soap, available at Walmart and on Amazon. It's packets of a dry soap powder, and you soak them in warm water with a gentle cloth. Place the cloth on your bare skin for up to 20 minutes if able. It doesn't sting your raw skin, and it's amazing at drying up and healing your skin. Then attach the bag as you normally would. Best of luck!

Hello,

I have a similar problem with baseplate fabric tape irritating the skin just below the stoma. As Susan mentioned, I cut the fabric tape off before installing a new base plate. It doesn't affect the baseplate main seal.

"Crusting" works well too. I use a 3M Cavilon swab to wet the damaged skin, sprinkle on stoma powder, and use a finger to gently spread it. Use the swab to dampen the area. Sprinkle stoma powder again. Repeat. This technique builds up a crust and helps protect the damaged skin.

I do cut my flange down to allow more skin exposure. Also, I cut little slits in the flange to allow movement of the flange to form around my belly shape. I know when the stoma is not active, approximately 7 PM, I get a shower without the appliance on and lay on the bed for an hour to let air get to the stoma.

Put some powder on, then the barrier spray until it heals.