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Something which can affect stoma bag wearers is sore and irritated skin. This can happen around the stoma as a result of bag changes. Removing the baseplate can sometimes damage your skin and cause soreness. Or skin stripping. You may have noticed this yourself.
If you have an issue with skin stripping you may notice your skin looks pink and sore. Much like a graze. The soreness will be dry to the touch.
If you are currently using a one-piece stoma bag, a solution may be to switch to a two-piece system. As the name suggests a two-piece stoma bag has two parts:
You leave the baseplate in place when you change your bag and simply remove the pouch as often as you want to. Fresh pouches are often secured in place through click or stick methods.
A two-piece system can be more convenient than a one-piece stoma bag. You don't have to remove the baseplate so often and the quick attachment mechanism makes changing the bag faster and easier. Apart from convenience, a two-piece stoma bag can help also prevent skin stripping and soreness.
Because the adhesive baseplate remains in place for several days, skin stripping could improve due to less frequent baseplate changes. Some baseplates contain healing properties which help the skin recover whilst in place.
Because the adhesive stays in place longer there is usually less skin stripping than with one-piece stoma bags. If you're not using a two-piece system yet and suffer with skin stripping, you may like to ask your stoma nurse about trying them?
Helen has been a stoma bag wearer for 14 years. She found frequent changes caused soreness of the skin. She said: “I like to run and go to the gym, and after showering don’t like to wear a wet bag which would show through my clothes, or spend ages drying my bag off.
"I prefer to change it. However, I found doing this every day, sometimes more than once a day meant I started to experience skin stripping and the skin around my stoma became red and sore.”
Helen’s stoma nurse recommended switching to a two-piece system to prevent skin stripping. She said: “It’s amazing. It means I can keep the baseplate on for several days. I can change the bag as often as I like without damaging my skin.
"After showering I can put a dry bag on, which is quicker and kinder to my skin than doing a full change. It also means if I want to wear a larger bag, say at night-time, or a smaller one for swimming, I can change the bags over without disturbing the skin.”
If you are experiencing sore skin, consult your stoma nurse.
If you're an Amcare™ Group customer or a me+™ member you can request a visit from one of our specialist stoma care nurses on 0800 085 2516 (UK) or 1800 818 988 (RoI).
If you would like to try a two piece stoma bag, call one of our friendly Product Specialists on 0800 282 254 for all UK enquiries or 1800 721 721 for all Republic of Ireland enquiries.
