PMR and Pred.

[Tamla1964]

Just one question and a little advice of my own. Does one’s body ever return to pre PMR treatment. The bruising and the bleeding are such a massive symptom I find it hard to believe that just with the withdrawal of Pred that they will also withdraw. I have found out to my dismay something that may seem obvious but don’t use Geo Tape. The blue, the sometimes pink tape athletes use to support injuries. I tried it with regret once it was time to remove. I now have a 2 inch strip of bruised and bleeding skin. I thought at one stage I was skinning my arm.

[Bridge31]

It has been an issue for me. One of the injuries to my shin took nearly 3 months to heal and one on my arm nearly 2 months. I am now down to 2.5mg and it has got better but some of the general damage is permanent ( the brown pigment on my shins and the bumpy condition on my legs and arms.)

Some of the others will be along to advise on the type of dressings that cause the least damage.

[Alebeau in reply to Bridge31]

I recently discovered these bandages that work perfectly on small to medium skin tears

They leave no scarring or skin bumps after healing

I use them for all my mishaps

Great 👍

Amazon has 2 sizes and I have a supply of both

Hydro Seal bandages

[DorsetLady PMRGCAuk volunteer]

Had GCA not PMR, but still occasionally get a little bit of bleeding -usually garden related - but certainly nothing like I used to, but I am older - [so skin not as good as it was!]. Been off Pred for almost 9 years now.

You can get medical dressings for fragile skin [ Mepore is just one brand] but whether there is an equivalent for athletic support I don’t know… a quick browse online would probably bring something up…

[Tamla1964 in reply to DorsetLady]

Thank you Lady!

[PMRpro Ambassador]

It will improve with time as the dose falls but not overnight, and if you use tape like that - SOAK it off, don't pull. I've had it a lot from the physio with no problems but I let it drop off in its own time!!

[piglette]

Yes it will improve although I think the thin skin does not really improve. My sister’s godmother had PMR in her sixties which lasted 8 years. She is now in her 90s and still looks like a model and got totally over it.

[DorsetLady PMRGCAuk volunteer in reply to piglette]

Not sure I can claim to look like a model... but certainly over GCA..😏

[piglette in reply to DorsetLady]

She looked like a model before PMR as well!!

[DorsetLady PMRGCAuk volunteer in reply to piglette]

Ah well, that rules me out then! 😳

[Lonsdalelass in reply to DorsetLady]

🤣

[Groggrim]

This never entered my head when I had blood tests yesterday. Pad of gauze and a length of surgical tape over the needle hole. I forgot all about it until I undressed for bed and just ripped it off. Red mark but no skin damage. Guess I was lucky.

[Pixix in reply to Groggrim]

Not lucky…a lot of people never have the thin skin problem! Don’t think you will get everything mentioned here…carrying on pulling off as normal, please, as a lot of us do without any problem!! Red mark is normal if you left it on all day. My husband is on blood thinners & bleeds very badly with any tiny cut & has developed thin skin…had weekly blood tests & still pulled the tape off hours after…& never had a problem! That skin gauze is not like the red & pink tape used mainly in sports! Please don’t give yourself yet another thing to worry about, Groggrim!!

[readingbooks in reply to Pixix]

I have never had the thin skin either. Pixix. Lots of other add ons but not that one. !

[Pixix in reply to readingbooks]

Like you, I think I’ve had all the others, & still have the extra 3 stone (I was on steroids a lot before PMR, for other illnesses), & the dreadful soaking sweats are still with me, oh & the moon face & hair loss!! They are what I call ‘small potatoes’…not big enough to mention! S x

[ngchgc]

Yes a problem I have had and continue with, and it's not nice trying to heel more wounds, I resorted to using crepe bandages and wrap then around the problem limb! First a dressing with an slick shiny surface so it does not stick, then wrap. Also a antibiotic powder applied first, drown it in the powder!

[Obscureclouds]

slightest tap and my skin will bruise or my skin will tear and bleed profusely. I go everywhere with saline wipes and a variety of sizes of soft edge plasters to try to avoid infection. (Allevyn gentle border and softpore as the wound heals but Elastoplast also do some skin friendly plasters for lighter wounds and scratches)but they still need to be removed very carefully. My legs are full of blemishes some 6 months or more old. Shins are the worse and after stupidly walking into a concrete planter on 17th January I’m still having weekly trips to the nurse to get a wound checked and dressed. A change of Nurse last week advised that lower leg wounds need some compression so she ordered me some Ulcer stockings - unfortunately a bit late in the day to see if these would have aided healing from the start. From discussion on a previous post I took the advice to purchase Limbkeepers. I try to be careful but have had a couple of brushes with the laundry basket and a heavy carrier bag which resulted in a bruise but no skin tear so hopefully they are doing the trick. Time will tell when I start doing more in the garden. I’m heartened to hear things may improve as my dose of Pred goes down

[Karenjaninaz]

That tape was assessed as ineffective for sports injuries in the US. When you really look at it how actually could it? It just sticks on the skin and damages it in the vulnerable . I bought some too before PMR and figured it out. I ended up using it to mark areas to be painted by my painter.

[Whippetygirl]

My Pharmacy sent me a different brand of Morphine patches and when I came to remove it it took the skin totally off, and yes it did hurt , a lot of tears and a lot of very naughty words , my GP was not very happy.

[Stills]

if you need limb support elastic bandage is soft, washable, breathable, comes in many sizes and cuts to suit your needs, affordable and on the self in supermarkets. Also folds up nicely to put in pocket if going out and may feel the need to apply later. I agree about that sports tape, does its job but very unkind on the skin.

[Lookingforideas]

I did get the very delicate/thin skin when on Pred for the first couple of years, but reduced very slowly over a lengthy period and it stopped getting worse. I was on extremely low doses for the last year and stopped completely over a year ago now. My skin’s not totally back to how it was pre Pred, but it’s a lot better now than it was then, and I guess I’m 5 years older now than I was when I got it, so maybe it’s just how it’s going to be from now on, and it’s definitely better than it was while on the Pred. There’s always light at the end of the tunnel 😊, and as someone ( who as it turns out also had PMR around the covid time too) said to me yesterday on the beach - coincidentally when I was having a moan about my ‘old’ skin while rubbing on more suntan lotion, - we’re very lucky to be able to travel, and … we’re on the right side of the grass - couldn’t really argue with her there 😊.

PS I also have more brown pigment here and there - I think a lot of it is marks from where the pred caused damage and it didn’t heal fast enough, but probably also years of sun damage too in the 60’s, 70’s & 80’s before we really knew about the necessity of high factor sun cream etc 🤦‍♀️

[Sumojo]

just as an addition to the conversation, I too have very fragile skin and when I remove a sticky dressing I use a special remover from the chemist. It comes in a large bottle or in individual wipes. Saved my arm after a puppy claw incident

[Phoebenooby]

I had to have a heart monitor on for 5 days, stuck on with strong stickers. My skin was red raw when I removed them (I had changed them a couple of times to have a shower, but they were only off for 15 mins) 2 weeks later and it’s just about healed…