Applying paste farther from stoma for less leaks?

I have had my ostomy for 5 years now. I use the ring or adapt paste. I have a leakage problem after 2 or 3 days. Maybe I am not doing it right. I apply the ring just around the stoma. When I use the paste, I also apply it just around the stoma. Should I be applying the paste around the stoma farther away from the stoma? I know less is better, but I wonder if I go out more with the paste - I will have less leaks? Please let me know what others are using for barrier leaks!

Michelle

Hey girl,

I have an ileostomy, so almost always full liquid output. I prep my skin around the stoma with liquid Nexcare liquid bandage - it comes in a little spray bottle. It dries quickly. Then, I use an Eakin cohesive seal by Convatec. After that, I put the wafer over that with the pouch already snapped onto the wafer. It works excellent! I've never had good luck with paste.

Ellie

Thanks for the advice. What do you clean the site off with? I use Edgepark Supplies. Do you ever use paste or the ring around the stoma to prevent leakage?

I use Convatec Natura Surfit Flexible. I just cut the hole so it fits my stomach. I use no paste. I only change my appliance every 4-5 days.

I have tried the paste and the rings. I found the paste to be too sloppy (or it could just be me) and the way I applied it. The rings were easier to manage but now I don't use either. Warming the flange up for a minute or two seems to be all I need to do. Could you possibly need a convex flange? Is your stoma sunk in toward your belly? Do you have any gaps or indentations on the area that supports your flange? Uneven skin could be the problem. I think if you know what could be causing the problem, it would be easier to help find the right product to fix it.

I had a problem with leaks every couple of days, and always at the absolutely the wrong time. I bought a plastic Stoma-Guard to wear whenever I felt my stoma might be accidentally injured. I noticed that while wearing the guard, my stuff never leaked. I now wear the Stoma-Guard from sun up to sundown every day and haven't had a leak since I began wearing it daily. The opening in the guard exactly fits over the barrier opening and applies pressure to the barrier. It does raise a lump under my clothing, and I have had to switch to suspenders to hold my pants up. But, the leaks are gone. Hope this helps.

I just put the Adapt paste around the base of my stoma before I put my bag on and I don't leak. It is trial and error, I think.

Did you say after 3 days? That may be the longest you can expect it to last and plan on changing every 3 days. I'm also wondering why you are using the ring. The best seals you can get, in my opinion, are on the bag.

I had a real deformed area to work with, so much so that my surgeon decided to do the reversal way before she intended. I was allergic to the adhesives, I had a severely inverted stoma that tried to heal closed all the time because of moist edges, and I had fat rolls from previous surgeries and from having lost 100 lbs.

But I'll share what my ostomy nurse advised me to do. Firstly, she had me clean the area well at first and be sure to rinse away any soap, adhesive remover, and any other residue completely, then make sure my skin was air-dried. She put a very thin strip of paste on the inner edge of the barrier of the bag (nearest to the stoma) and let it sit until tacky while I stalled for time cleaning around the sink or something.

Then when I placed the barrier, she had me lay down to make the surface flatter and hold the bag against my skin to warm up, which activated the adhesive.

We ended up applying pieces of the stoma ring into the crevices caused by the fat rolls, but that didn't always work.

I mostly stayed home for the ten months I had it because I often had to change 3 times a day and my skin was so raw! If it wasn't leaking, all the extra goop I used would block the hole in the bag and cause more problems.

Sorry, I regress. You said it yourself: less is best. Give it a try, okay?