• Guest, the forum is undergoing some upgrades and so the usual themes will be unavailable for a few days. In the meantime, you can use the forum like normal. We'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Cannula/infusion sets causing red, itchy skin

E

emmalouise89

Newbie
Hi , just looking for some help or advice please .
I have been using the Medtronic insulin pump for almost 2years now and everything has been great but recently I have been having some problems regarding the cannulas.

I insert my infusion set/cannula in my stomach area and rotate at each change however, recently when I have been changing infusion sets and cannulas the skin underneath where my cannula has been is very red, itchy and sometimes has small raised bumps that are extremely itchy. It is as though my skin is sensitive to the adhesive.

Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this? And if so , is there any creams , lotions or other ways to stop this from happening , or that can even make it less uncomfortable ?

Thanks
 
@emmalouise89 sorry to hear this. As @catapillar has said, there are some methods of minimising skin distress.

I'm currently road testing some Cavilon spray that I asked my doctor to prescribe - it's okayish, I'm finding, but not bombproof. I'm preferring to change cannulas every two days rather than three days at the moment. Redness and a little itchy soreness is still happening, despite trying two layers of spray (spray, allow to dry, spray again, allow to dry, insert cannula).

I'm using BioOil to try to fix the octopus-sucker raised bumpy itchy marks that were the start of this problem, but put it this way, it's a good job I don't wear crop tops..... it's a long haul it seems to get rid of the scarring. And the first ones I reacted to are still ever so itchy.

When I change cannula tomorrow I am going to use Tegaderm. I've tried, in turn, a barrier cream, Cavilon film and Cavilon spray, and so far things have been less bad but not perfect. I have been saving the option of an actual dressing - tomorrow's the day for that.

:)
 
Snapsy said:
I'm using BioOil to try to fix the octopus-sucker raised bumpy itchy marks that were the start of this problem, but put it this way, it's a good job I don't wear crop tops..... it's a long haul it seems to get rid of the scarring. And the first ones I reacted to are still ever so itchy.
Click to expand...

Occasionally I'll get a raised red mark where the cannuala has been inserted, never thought of using a product like Bio-Oil @Snapsy

Good tip.
 
Hi - just out of interest what set are you using ? As I was using the mios which are plastic and I had an allergic reaction, tried Cavlon spray which helped but then switched to the sure t and although I still get red marks its no where near as sore looking now, with a set change every 2 days it's fine.
 
Hi everyone , thanks for the replies !

I am using the Medtronic silhouette infusion sets and haven't had any problems with the cannulas until recently.

That's a shame , sorry to hear that some of you are finding it as uncomfortable (or more so!) than I am, its rather irritating !

Thanks so much for all the suggestions , it is definitely something I will be mentioning to my doctor and will try out some of the sprays.

Thanks again and hope things improve for yous :-)
 
Back
Top