SOME HELPFUL HINTS FROM DEBRA MEMBERS

Johnsons Pure Cornstarch Baby Powder - At the get-together in Ohakune Cathy Maher talked about using this a lot for herself as well as the babies. This was confirmed by Elaine Fehre (who also has Simplex EB) as a great preventive measure to sprinkle liberally everywhere that might chaffe, including between toes.

Comvita Wound Care Cream 18 - recommended for healing wounds, particularly infections. Elaine said she had some infected insect bites that responded well to this, and Viv has found it worked well on a wound that had previously refused to heal.
* Comvita have offered some free samples for anyone else who would like to try using it. Let Viv or me know and we'll send some out.

Honey dressings in general, or even pure manuka honey, have been shown to have really good healing properties, and the Comvita product is based on Manuka honey.

Hema Oil - used by Humphrey on his hands, arms & torso after a bath, this has helped reduce the red areas that occur after wounds heal, and kept his skin in great condition. It is able to be used on very sensitive skin without irritation, and has a pleasant mild lavender smell. Margaret Hema blends this pure essential oil from NZ grown organic ingredients including avocado and lavender oil, and it's high in vitamin E.
* I have some 100ml sample bottles of Hema Oil - let me know if you would like to try it.

Saline baths - when bathing with open wounds they can sting in fresh or sea water, but if you adjust the water to the concentration of "normal saline", which is about half way between the two, it can take the sting out and allow you to soak comfortably, because it has the same salinity as the human body.
Use 1kg of salt to a bath about 2/3rds full, and a big handful of salt dissolved in a watering can (what Humphrey uses for a shower if someone holds it over him).

Removing tape - if using Hypafix or other gentle tapes to hold dressings in place, it can be easily and painlessly removed by dissolving the sticky stuff with either "remove-it" that comes in little sterile swab packets, or a spray on bottle of "Dissolve-it" from the hardware store. Caution with the spray though because it's easy to use a lot and it can cause a sensitivity to develop if used too much.
Another suggestion is to use an adhesive remover Convactec made by Conva Care. It is a citrus based sachet type wipe that is gentle on E.B skin but keep away from eyes.

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