HELP! I know Kacey can't be the only person to ever experience this!
Kacey has been pumping for almost 2 years now and this is our FIRST site infection and I'm not sure how to "treat" it? Of course, it doesn't help that today is a holiday AND a Saturday.
Anyway...yesterday was site change. She likes getting in the shower when she pulls out her old set and scrubs up with nothing attached. So she was undressing and I heard her yell for me. I went running in and saw her standing there trying to take her old set out and all around the set about 2 inches round it was all red, swollen and inflamed. As she pulled the set out, puss came out with it. It oozed....she cried...and then she got in the shower to clean up. When she got out, the site was worse and she was shivering. I cleaned up the old site with some peroxide and I put in her new site on the opposite side of her tummy. She continued to cry and about an hour later, she complained that she didn't feel good. I ran my hand along her face like I normally do and she was warm!! I grabbed the thermometer and she had a FEVER...102*!!! I started to have a minor meltdown. All I could think was this infection was causing all of this and it went unnoticed til it was too late. She's almost 11 years old, so I don't dress her or continually check her site because...well...for a little girl this age, it's a bit embarrassing to have Mom lifting to check her sites. She's so comfortable with her sites that she doesn't take notice of them and when the 3 days pass...she takes the old one out and I put the new one in. We've never had this issue.
So now...here we are almost 24 hours later....the fever is gone (thank you Motrin) and the site isn't as inflamed. The little hole is scabbed and not draining anything. It's still sore to the touch though. We've used ice on it to calm the inflammation. I've put more peroxide on it. I dabbed a little Neosporin on the hole.
Here is what I want to know....
What causes a site to get infected? Was it something I did? Was it something she did? Bumping it? Pulling it and not realizing it?
How do you care for something like this?
Should I get her an antibiotic? If not, how do I know when I should take her in to have it checked?
She's not showing any signs of being sick. She has a great appetite. She doesn't have a fever anymore. She's playing. The area is just very sensitive and it's still red...alittle smaller than a tennis ball.
Any help that any of you could offer would be GREAT!!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2011!!! :) May you all have a wonderful year!
5 comments:
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Hi Jill, I posted a link above to Rachael's site...she had something similar recently. It sounds like you did everything right and it sounds like things are turning around. BGs OK, no pus, no more fever, redness and swelling subsiding...and hopefully the pain will diminish by tomorrow. If any of the above return...call the MD for sure.
Joe had an infected site once, actually twice...one from a pump and one from a sensor. I did the same thing as you and he was fine...actually, I just thought of Jonathan from Jonathon's Journey...he had a pretty bad infection (abscess) like during week one or two of pumping. I think he did need antibiotics to clear that up.
It sounds like you are on it girl. Keep up the good work...and assessment. We have a bum toe I have been worried about with Joe...I so know the stress. (HUGS)
Hmm, it sounds like you did everything you could. I can't think of anything else except maybe calling the DR on Monday and seeing if he/she would reccomend an antibiotic. I have no idea what would cause the infection. We've not had one yet, but I do seem to remember the pump trainer telling us to be on the lookout for them. Hope she continues to get better. Happy New Year...
The only other tip I would have for you is to use Hot compresseses to bring the snot, what i call pus, to the top of the site. It really also helps with the soreness. I have no clue why the heat but it works. A really hot washcloth soaked in water on for about 20 minutes.
I read your comment on my blog. I don't know if those are "true" infections. They really don't drain pus (a little fluid came out but hardly any) and , and there is really no way with all the clean techniques used. I have had a few of them, and they go away without medications in about 3-5 days. I use the rapid D inserts and I wonder if my body is just mad because there is a foreign object in it. About 4 years ago, I had a "real" infection that required draining, and had been worried that this may be the same, but it didn't drain, or feel "deep" like the real one. My doc said that sometimes your body just overreacts. If you have stable BG, and no fever they usually go away. The ONLY place I have ever had them is when I use a stomach site. Best wishes, it's no fun to have ouchie spots!
You will notice that after the inflammation goes away, the area underneath feels kinda like a hard bump. DO NOT USE THIS SPOT for AT LEAST 3 months. I have noticed that if you use a site like this too soon the insulin will NOT absorb correctly.
I hope this helps! :)
(((HUGS)))
Rachael
UGH UGH UGH!!!!
I've never walked down this road before!!!!
Sounds like you did a fantastic job...how's it going now?
Sorry I'm so behind!
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