Do Diabetics bruise more easily?

Hmm...I too bruise like a peach and from every blood test! But I've been diabetic since I was 11 so I don't really remember if I did beforehand...interesting thought though! xx

Hi dorcas, I used to be needle phobic but I've had so many blood tests and injections of one sort or another over the last 4 or 5 years that I now offer to do my own blood tests :lol:

Sometimes I bruise but mostly I dont, I'm not sure what causes it but I have had a few that ache as the blood is taken and they are always the ones that bruise, as for right or left I've had em both, sometimes together when having blood taken from a vein and an artery at the same time and it seems to make no difference to whether it bruises or not.

Hi Dorcas,
I sometimes bruise, the last test i had the man taking the blood told me id have a bruise (dont know how he could tell, but here is the result,



Sue

I bruise easily and bleed a lot too and I think it is since I have been taking a daily aspirin.

Hi all. I never used to bruise at all, n now I do... purpley black on injection sites despite changing my needles to 5mm n new needle each n every time! I find arnica cream aids healing n disppearance of the bruised area faster. Now massage n rub site area well to disperse drug better n find still bruise but not as severely. Anna.

I always apply firm pressure to the area with a piece of cotton wool and wait 2-3 minutes, this normally works and stops any leakage of blood which causes the bruise.

Nigel

Most of the phlebotomists at my local lab are brilliant, it doesn't hurt and they hardly leave a mark but there is one lady who has twice left me with a bruise... I just cross my fingers I don't get her.
I think it does depend on how 'good' your veins are. I've watched the nurse try to take blood from my mother and the veins keep collapsing so my poor Mum is always left with horrible bruises.

I have deep veins, even an A&E consultant had trouble finding a vein once, so usually I have some blood seepage resulting in a bruise. The last test I had though was a different nurse she tried my right arm first, with little luck, then my left arm (the one that was injured in an accident) and with some difficulty got the blood from there-but no bruising to either arm! I can only conclude it's the nurses skill.

After being diabetic for over 20 years and verious other reasons for having blood taken, I dread to think how many pints so far have been tested...

If you taken something like a apsrine yes this can make the changes of brusing slightly higher etc... And if pressure isn't put on the cotton wool to stem and aid sealing then yes you bruise more..

But technique of the phlebotomist, nurse or doctor which really determines if and how much you might bruise..

The only time I've it painful is when the nurse or should I say the health care assistant that doing it, missed the vein and stuck the needle into my tendon (you have a tendon that runs through your elbow behind the main vien) and take my word it hurt not only when she did it but for a week or so afterwars...

Strange thing is though when I first started having bloods taken I used to hate it, scared the hell out of me.. But it was the old fashioned method of drawing off a syringe of blood, then squarting it into sample vials for the lab, (left overs squarted down the sink) so it was a relieve that the new system came in, where the clip sample bottle onto the end of the syringe.. What ever it's called..

But a couple of years ago at the main hospital, the phlebotomist tried my right arm, but my vien had gone into hidden, but instead of trying my left arm, she decided to wack me with the old fashioned syringe method, boy did feel fainted after that..

I rarely bruise - didn't even bruise when I broke my leg - I must have veins like iron, but last time I had a blood test it appeared that while the skin sealed the vein didn't and I got leaked blood under most of my lower arm giving me a 8" x5" bruise.

Cheers
Ailz

I have to have my bloods taken with a syringe as the newer way is too powerful and i was told the needle on those is thicker than a syringe, i am hard to bleed and dont always manage to find my viens in the elbow crook, so usually have it taken from half way down the arm and if that fails ive had blood taken from hands and worst of all my feet now that really does hurt , i always try and drink plenty of water before, it does seem to make a difference in getting a good vien .

Sue

dorcas61 said:

PS - is it ok to drink lots of water before a fasting blood test?

Click to expand...

I can't see why not (provided it's water) but others may correct me here.

Nigel

I no longer have fasting blood tests but when I did was positively encouraged to drink lots of water.

I got told to drink water even before a fasting blood test because it makes your veins more prominent and therefore easier to get blood from. With regards to the bruising i think i have always bruised easily because i have fair skin but last week i had two hypo related fits and am now covered in bruises. I think diabetes definitely plays a part in easy bruising.

You can drink as much as you like as long it IS only water. I was told this by my nurse so hope it is correct.