- Messages
- 10,622
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
It is an old chestnut, I know, and many of us reuse lancets, despite the advice to use a fresh one each time.
I use the Accuchek fast click lancets, always wash hands first, so for the sake of economy have only changed the lancet daily. Therefore the same lancet is used 5 or 6 times then discarded.
Three weeks ago I had a pine needle from someones old Christmas tree caught down the base of my fingernail. It hurt a lot after I pulled it out, didn't bleed much, but tore the cuticle. I thought nothing of it, and the following day chose that finger tip as the victim for the finger stabbing of the day. The following day I noticed some redness and tenderness around the fingernail. The day after yellow below the nail, and the day after that my finger tip was swollen with a collection of pus under the surface, and also some leaking from the edge of the finger nail. I also looked as if I was wearing a large red woolly glove.
The diagnosis - paronychia, and felon. It certainly felt criminal! The treatment - several courses of antibiotics, minor (but painful) incision to drain pus, splint on finger, follow up referral to hand orthopaedic specialist as there is possibility of damage to the finger joint. I seem to have lost most of January to a plethora of sleepless nights pacing the floor in a medicated sorry state.
The moral of the story, for me, is brand new sparklingly clean lancet every time. It is possible that the infection was introduced by that pesky pine needle, but I doubt the aggravation of same lancet repeatedly in same finger tip helped.
I was going to include photographs, but can't hold the camera.
I use the Accuchek fast click lancets, always wash hands first, so for the sake of economy have only changed the lancet daily. Therefore the same lancet is used 5 or 6 times then discarded.
Three weeks ago I had a pine needle from someones old Christmas tree caught down the base of my fingernail. It hurt a lot after I pulled it out, didn't bleed much, but tore the cuticle. I thought nothing of it, and the following day chose that finger tip as the victim for the finger stabbing of the day. The following day I noticed some redness and tenderness around the fingernail. The day after yellow below the nail, and the day after that my finger tip was swollen with a collection of pus under the surface, and also some leaking from the edge of the finger nail. I also looked as if I was wearing a large red woolly glove.
The diagnosis - paronychia, and felon. It certainly felt criminal! The treatment - several courses of antibiotics, minor (but painful) incision to drain pus, splint on finger, follow up referral to hand orthopaedic specialist as there is possibility of damage to the finger joint. I seem to have lost most of January to a plethora of sleepless nights pacing the floor in a medicated sorry state.
The moral of the story, for me, is brand new sparklingly clean lancet every time. It is possible that the infection was introduced by that pesky pine needle, but I doubt the aggravation of same lancet repeatedly in same finger tip helped.
I was going to include photographs, but can't hold the camera.