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finger prickin?

D

debbiezoe

Member
Messages
18
Location
Ballymena, Northern Ireland
Does anyone have any issues with the blood running along time after finger prickin?
Zoe 6, has jus been diagnosed with type 1, her fingers bleed for a long time after i check her BM. She says that it "burns/stings". Her wee fingers r covered in prick marks and its heart breakin! Needless to say I have an endless supply of plasters!

I have the needle turned to the lowest - 1 and its stil the same.
Anyone else had this problem?
 
Maybe go back to the doctors and see if there is a less evasive needle to use for testing bloods, I use a one touch ultra which to me seems sensitive and hurts less.
 
You can test her toes too, it will give her little fingers a rest from time to time. Using plasters might make things look worse because it keeps the skin damp. When Jess gets out of a long bath or after swimming her fingers are covered in prick marks, the damp skin emphasises the marks. I find holding a piece of tissue over the prick afterwards and applying gentle pressure for a few seconds, maybe up to a minute, will stop the bleeding. Some days the prick seems to bleed longer than others, when she's been exercising or her hands are hot it is worse. When you say she bleeds for a long time afterwards, how long do you mean?
 
Khaleb gets this sometimes too. I try to keep a bit of pressure on it and hold his hand in the air but he's too impatient and just wants to get going. He often then starts crawling along the floor or doing something else with his hands that starts it bleeding again. I have pretty good rotation so don't find the prick marks get out of hand unless he's been sick and copping extra tests. I use the toes a bit at night when he's asleep. He's had an accu-chek soft clicks since he was 8 months old and I have found this better than others I have tried. Doesn't go off like a shot gun either. I don't push very hard against his finger either. Being new to this Zoe has probably been having heaps of tests so you can work out where she's going. Eventually you wont need to test quite so much. I think Khaleb was tested every hour for nearly a week while in intensive care.

Hope things are going well. I remember the first few months after diagnosis as being extremely tiring/worrying/frustrating. Did you pick up on the symptoms early on?
 
Gosh u have been doin this since he was a baby! That must have been v hard!
She was wettin the bed very bad for the last yr and jus by chance at an outpatient appointment it showed in her urine! She is on a low dose of insulin becos we caught it early which is great!

Thank u for the advice!
 
Awww .. poor wee lass .. the latest lancing device is so fine, I do not feel it.
It is the OneTouch Comfort and uses ultra fine points of just 0.22mm and 33g. I got mine FOC direct from OneTouch after I wrote concerning an advert in Balance Magazine from Diabetes UK.
They said I didn't qualify but sent me one as a good will gesture... its the best I have ever used!
 
Not sure if this will help but it might do

Try trimming off a very small piece of the end of the lancet that goes in to the base of the finger pricker so that it doesnt protude too much. You should be able to do this using a pair of curtain wire nips or heavy duty scissors. That way using a setting of 1 shouldnt prick quite so deeply.

Sadly as yet, there hasnt been a finger pricker device that has been designed for small kids with tender fingers. This should be easily addressed by companies concerned but if no one complains to them, then nothing will be done :(
 
SophiaW said:
You can test her toes too, it will give her little fingers a rest from time to time.
Click to expand...

Is it ok to test using toes? Are there any other areas that can be used to give fingers a rest. My son is an ace fiddler and we would like to avoid his fingers to get to sore or hard.
 
dot said:
Is it ok to test using toes? Are there any other areas that can be used to give fingers a rest. My son is an ace fiddler and we would like to avoid his fingers to get to sore or hard.
Click to expand...

Toes are accurate but it isn't advisable to use them long term. The 'Look after your Feet' issue is the reason you don't keep putting little holes in them. I don't think using an alternative site (with the attachment for the lancer) is a good option for children as it is not considered accurate. Maybe is depends on how old your son is also. I use a toe at night time so it is really only once or twice in 24 hrs. As Khaleb gets older I wont use his toes at all. I don't find Khaleb's fingers becoming hard or seem sore (he can't tell me if they are) and they look good until he gets sick or dry in Winter. If your son keeps the pricks to the sides he hopefully wont affect playing comfort. Khaleb has an average of 7 tests a day and has done for the last 2.5 years.
 
debbiezoe said:
sophiaw.....She bleeds for a good few mins, but i have noticed if i hold a tissue on it and distract her for a few moments it has stopped! I see ur wee one is 8, how long has she been diagnosed?
Click to expand...

Jess was diagnosed when she was 4 so she'd had it just a little over 4 years now.

Jen, I've never been told not to test her toes, it was our consultant who suggested that her toes can be used to rest her fingers. I usually only use toes to test if we're testing often, like when she's not well and we're doing a lot of testing to monitor her levels.
 
Best finger pricker I personally found no pain with is my Multiclix from accu check. Have tried nearly all the main brands now. I have soft geek hands so practically baby skin :lol: the rest I found even on lowest settings would bruise my fingers. So if you havent tried it I would reccomend it.
 
I use the Accuchek multiclix thingy. I have now taken about 500 bloods from my left hand. I tried my first three fingers originally but they started not liking it so I changed to my hypothenar eminence. If you close your hand then your little finger will rest on the hypothenar eminence and it makes a very useful long term blood getter. Set the lance to the lowest setting and gradually increase it. I use 2.5 on mine. Press the lance firmly into your hand and then trigger it. You should get a minute amount of blood and then you squeeze around the prick until you have enough to fill the test strip.

I don't have any real problems with my hand at this time and I am hoping to keep going! The main thing is to make the very smallest prick you can and then squeeze.

Hope this helps.
 
Muffmitz said:
I use the Accuchek multiclix thingy. I have now taken about 500 bloods from my left hand. I tried my first three fingers originally but they started not liking it so I changed to my hypothenar eminence. If you close your hand then your little finger will rest on the hypothenar eminence and it makes a very useful long term blood getter. Set the lance to the lowest setting and gradually increase it. I use 2.5 on mine. Press the lance firmly into your hand and then trigger it. You should get a minute amount of blood and then you squeeze around the prick until you have enough to fill the test strip.

I don't have any real problems with my hand at this time and I am hoping to keep going! The main thing is to make the very smallest prick you can and then squeeze.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...


As this is an AST (Alternative Site Testing) technique, before using it you should discuss this with your HCP's as it is not as accurate as the finger pricking which is the normal recommended method for most people.
 
The bleeding should be stopped instantly, what i do is after pricking i put a cotton wool cigarette tip on the cut ' it stops instantly, the cotton wool is compressed so firm and closes the wound instantly while soaking up the excess blood
Honestly anyone who has to prick their fingers 7 times everyday should be doing this, a box of a couple of hundred are only about 69p. Asda do I buy 1 get 1 free as well.

regarding Kids, this could take their mind off the pain by telling them to hold the tip till it stops bleeding, they use the same in the hospital only a bit larger.
 
Hobs said:
Awww .. poor wee lass .. the latest lancing device is so fine, I do not feel it.
It is the OneTouch Comfort and uses ultra fine points of just 0.22mm and 33g. I got mine FOC direct from OneTouch after I wrote concerning an advert in Balance Magazine from Diabetes UK.
They said I didn't qualify but sent me one as a good will gesture... its the best I have ever used!
Click to expand...

I've sent off for a free OneTouch Comfort lancing device to try it out. That size lancet is thinner than the one we're using so if it's less painful I'm all for it. They've also offered a free OneTouch Mini test meter which we're going to try. They come in a variety of colours and there's one in pink! Pink is a little someone's favorite colour so I reckon it's going to be a hit with her :)
 
SophiaW said:
I've sent off for a free OneTouch Comfort lancing device to try it out. That size lancet is thinner than the one we're using so if it's less painful I'm all for it. They've also offered a free OneTouch Mini test meter which we're going to try. They come in a variety of colours and there's one in pink! Pink is a little someone's favorite colour so I reckon it's going to be a hit with her :)
Click to expand...

I really hope they send it to you and your little one finds it a lot less painful ...I also hope she likes the smaller meter and it arrives very pink :wink: .
I am SO pleased to have been of some help... please keep me up to date how she gets on *thumbsup*
 
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