Has anyone gotten an infection in your test finger(s)?
My son has a pretty big boil on his right hand index finger (though not the side it would normally be poked). It could be from a sliver or something else, but I'm just wondering if it could be from BG checks. We are seeing the dr. tonight.
as long as it's a finger he uses to test with, it could be related. I've never had one(that I can recall) but I'm sure they are common for diabetics because we have to poke our fingers. I'm sure treatment will just be draining it(I've had boil-type infections drained before, it's almost the same amount of pain as a finger poke) and/or antibiotics or something.
If he came into contact with any dirt or other potentially infectious substances after testing, it's possible. I've never had any myself, but any open wound (like the hole after poking yourself with a lancet) can get infected if exposed to something that can cause such a state.
My pump site is very red and painful. Its been like this for a week and its doesn't seem to be getting any better. In 9 years with the pump, this has never happened to me and I'm just concerned because it is not going away and even my clothing hurts against it. Does anyone have a solution to this? I have my check up next week, but it would be nice if it would go away by then.
[quote user="Kelly Jones"]
My pump site is very red and painful. Its been like this for a week and its doesn't seem to be getting any better. In 9 years with the pump, this has never happened to me and I'm just concerned because it is not going away and even my clothing hurts against it. Does anyone have a solution to this? I have my check up next week, but it would be nice if it would go away by then.
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i've never had an infected pump site, but if that's what you think it is make sure you keep it clean and dry. you can try some pain relief neosporin or something like that to see if it helps. since it's not going away, you might need something like antibiotics.
The last couple of years I started putting Neosporin on my site after I pull it out the old infusion . It seems to help keep any irritation/infection down and I think they heal up faster. Not really helpful for your current situation, but for future use... Hope it starts getting better soon!
Thanks for all the tips. I tried the neosporin, I think its deeper than just the surface so it didn't really make a difference. I guess in time it will finally clear up!
I got a boil-type infection in high school where I injected on my leg. If you really think something is infected, I'd see a dr. Mine got worse when left on its own. When I finally saw the doctor (forced there by my Mom, lol), it had to be drained and I needed antibiotics. I still have a big scar b/c I let it go so long.
[quote user="Sarah"]
I got a boil-type infection in high school where I injected on my leg. If you really think something is infected, I'd see a dr. Mine got worse when left on its own. When I finally saw the doctor (forced there by my Mom, lol), it had to be drained and I needed antibiotics. I still have a big scar b/c I let it go so long.
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me too! i had an infected boil like thing(though it wasn't a boil) that i apparently got from my dad's side(he had them a lot during my mom's 2year marriage to him) and after getting it drained everyday, then every two days for a total of two weeks..i've been left with a scar under my armpit from it!
I have had so many all over my body, especially under my arms and inner thigh area. I had lots of surgeries to get them drained and they are so painful! They said it was from poor blood sugar control, and now that my readings are good, I don't have that problem anymore. I guess my scars remind me not to go there again!
Kelly, When my son has had infected pump sites, we have him sit with a warm washcloth over it for 15 min or so a couple times a day. The moist heat is supposed to help draw the infection to the surface and stimulates blood flow to help your body fight it. His worst infection was noticably better within 1 day of doing this and we continued for 2 more days. If you try this and it doesn't seem to get better - get to your dr.
Megan, That is a great suggestion on putting a some neosporin on the site as soon as you you take out the infusion set. I am going to be doing that from now on.
Update: We saw the dr. Tues night and J possibly has a staph infection. The dr. was pretty concerned but let him start on oral antibiotics and we had to go back last night to get it rechecked. She drew a line around it to mark the edges so we could more easily see if it was getting bigger. We also had to soak his finger in lukewarm water 2-3x per day. Thankfully, it was looking better (to me and to my daycare provider) after 2 doses of the antibiotics though the dr. didn't think it looked that great. Though after talking about it, she did agree that it had certainly not gotten worse and some of the redness had gone down. We are continuing the treatment and will get it rechecked on Friday.
I'm still unsure what caused this, but my reading on staph infections is that they can occur with no noticeable injury. So maybe just bad luck.
Thank you for the suggestion! I sweat a lot working out too so I'm sure that doesn't help keep it clean either. I'll try this and see what happens!
[quote user="JDVsMom"]
Update: We saw the dr. Tues night and J possibly has a staph infection. The dr. was pretty concerned but let him start on oral antibiotics and we had to go back last night to get it rechecked. She drew a line around it to mark the edges so we could more easily see if it was getting bigger. We also had to soak his finger in lukewarm water 2-3x per day. Thankfully, it was looking better (to me and to my daycare provider) after 2 doses of the antibiotics though the dr. didn't think it looked that great. Though after talking about it, she did agree that it had certainly not gotten worse and some of the redness had gone down. We are continuing the treatment and will get it rechecked on Friday.
I'm still unsure what caused this, but my reading on staph infections is that they can occur with no noticeable injury. So maybe just bad luck.
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staph infection! yes that's what i get sometimes. I have only had them a few times, but I think generally it's just bacteria gets into an open wound, such as a cut from poking your finger. the one i got under my armpit was probably due to shaving, and the one i had break all over my back(didn't help i popped one haha) shortly after getting a tattoo was probably due to some bacteria getting on it during the healing process (at the time i was living in a basement that wasn't very...clean. it was clean but my bed it turned out was under the window that leaked during the rain so there was mold going that i didn't know about til a few months later).
i'm sure with the antibiotics and dipping it in water like you're doing will make it go down. they only cut and drain them if they are really bad. glad it's getting better!!