Ostomy leaks every 24 hours, what am I doing wrong???

I had my operation back on 12/7/2012, for the first few weeks outside of errors made by a nurse in the hospital I did not have any leaks with bags I put on at home until several days of use.

Recently over the past 3 weeks I have only had 1 ostomy wafer/bag that has lasted a few days. Every other one has leaked after 24-48 hours of use.

I am using the hollister two piece ostomy with a clip, 2-1/4th bag with a 1-1/2 precut wafer. I had leaks with both the cut & pre cut wafer so I find that is not the issue here.

When applying the bag I use two of the 3M cavilon no sting barrier film around the stoma, then remove the sticker for the wafer, apply the wafer and press for 2-3 minutes.

I then lock in the 2nd part (the ostomy bag) and apply the clip at the end.



Am I missing a step? Am I doing something wrong or am I just using a series of defective wafers/bags? The leaks are coming from the WAFER and not from the bag, I often wake up to leaks on the top, right or bottom sides of the bag. I've ruined multiple sheets and have started sleeping on pads designed for bed wetters to stop from more sheets getting ruined. I've also thrown out several shirts/underwear which have gotten ruined due to thees bags leaking.

Oh yeah, I also bought the equalizer from stomaplex which I can tell you has done NOTHING to stop these leaks. Please help, I don't know what to do.

can you make an appointment to see an ostomy nurse?

why are you using the no sting barrier film?

and are you using anything else other than the wafer and bag? paste? eakin seals or adapt rings?

Can you go to your doctor's office and see an ostomy nurse?

definitely forget the baby wipes. for sure. they could be oily/lotiony and preventing good adhesion.

I don't understand why you are using the barrier film. There is no need for it if you do not have any irritated areas. You don't need anything like it if you don't have irritated areas.

Also it seems everyone uses either paste or seals or rings to help with keeping things on. I think this is definitely the step you are missing. I have had four ileostomies and for two of them I used paste, for one I used eakin seals, and the one I have now I use adapt rings. Any of these things will help you get a good seal between your skin around the stoma and the wafer. Also for all of them, it really depends how you are using them to know if they are going to work for you.

as for warming the wafer.. you can hold your hand over it after you have everything applied. But some of us even use the hair dryer on low setting for a little bit after everything is applied.

Try to keep things simple.. remove unnecessary stuff... like baby wipes, barrier wipes.. and go from there.

so in summary.. the simplest way.. is just to clean with dial soap and warm water. Dry your skin thoroughly. And then dry it some more. If you are going to try the paste. Put a nice ring of it on the inside diameter of your wafer. Let it sit a little while. Smash the paste down a bit with your fingers. Then put the wafer/paste thing onto your body. Snap on your bag. Hold your hand over the wafer area for awhile or hairdry the wafer area a while. Don't bend or twist for about half an hour.

If you are going to use a eakin seal or ring. I apply that to the back of my wafer. Smash it down and let it come into the inside diameter edge of the wafer a bit. Then put that onto your body, heat, and then no twist/bend for awhile..

good luck.. let us know what you try next and how that works. we may have other ideas.

in regards to the paste.. I never had dips and valleys of my skin. And my very first ostomy nurse.. used the paste for adhesion, applying it like I described above. And it definitely did adhere... even with very vigorous sporting activies. Very well in fact. In fact.. last time in the hospital for my fourth ileo the CC nurses used paste also. It always worked to keep the wafer sealed on. To each their own, but I don't think if someone is in a pickle and needs to try some different things.... the methods which have worked great for some of us.. shouldn't be shot down.

Even before my surgery, I had saved Ron's products and directions in a file. When I began having leaking issues, very early on, I printed them out and now use many of the same products and steps that he outlines. I don't use the belt, strips or M9 Drops, and I don't shave. I use Cavilon Barrier Wipes/Spray and All Care Adhesive Remover Wipes.

After reading my product inserts and suggestions on the boards regarding importance of the use of heat & pressure, I became very "anal" about this step. I use my hairdryer to warm both my Eakin & my wafer right before placing them--separately. I then alternate heat & pressure over all for 3 mins or so once the wafer is on, but before applying the Sure Seal.

I switched to a whole Eakin, Convatec Convex Moldable [applied diamond-shaped], Sure Seals and my heat & pressure routine all at the same time and something finally clicked and saved my sanity. I am now consistently getting 7-10 days wear, up from only 2-hrs to 2-days wear.

I am surprised the Equalizer did not work as I liked the concept of concentrated even & steady pressure around the stoma. However, I did not like the price So, I went to Home Depot and found this perfectly sized pvc cap for less than a buck and it has become an important part of my heat & pressure step. I also use it to shield my stoma from the heat of my hairdryer.

Oh I am so sorry you are having leaks! I have had a couple too and it's so upsetting. After my surgery, I did everything the nurse was doing, powder, paste, barrier wipes etc. but kept leaking. So I went to a medical supply store where the nurse there helped me find the Coloplast Sensura system and its worked beautifully for me. I (although just recently) now take off my pouch, hop in the shower, make sure everything is cleaned up and when I get out I place a small square of paper towel over my stoma to dry it and catch anything that decides to come out. I do eat about 5 marshmallows before my shower!

When I get out of the shower, I cut my flange as it has to be cut in an oval. I then apply a thin layer of Friars Balsam Tincture around my stoma and where the wafer goes, wait for it to dry and become sticky while I am heating my wafer up on low with my hair dryer, peel off the back and stick it on. I run a qtip around the stoma to make sure everything is stuck down, snap on my bag and then I hold a small towel there while I am cleaning up to use the heat to help with adhesion. The less mucking around with products the better for me.

I really hope you find some tricks to use! Everyone has a bit of a different system. I change mine every four days as I like the clean feeling and I am cautious about my skin.

Good luck!!

I took everyones advice and ordered the items nascarron suggested today.

Woke up to another leak at 8am and didn't have the new supplies yet I changed my routine. I immediately jumped in the shower & cleaned the area with soap & water. Very basic soap from dial, nothing fancy. I avoided using baby wipes, tried to use some heat from a hair dryer and applied the stoma paste to the wafer. Everything seems to be stable now yet we'll see what happens when I wake up tomorrow.

How do you guys deal with changing all of this while your stoma is still producing output?

Oh also, what do you use to dry the area after you wash with soap/water?

Thanks again for all of the replies, I really appreciate everyones help.

door.. i'm crossing fingers for you that what you tried works.

To answer your new questions. I use papertowels. I take a full sheet and tear it into quarter size pieces. Or you can buy the smaller size paper towels and break them in half. I make a huge stack of these pieces and have them ready to go.

I also use a washcloth. So I intermix both the papertowels and wash cloth to dry the area and also to hold over the stoma when its just being a bad little boy when I'm changing.

The important thing is to have all of your gear lined up and ready to go before you take off your old gear. And then once you get cleaned up you can wrap the papertowel pieces or washcloth over the spewing part of the stoma and hold that with one hand.. then use the other hand to get things on. This is also another reason that less is better. The less stuff you use.. the faster you can change.

good luck. again.. wishing you a very good night with everything staying on for you.

This morning is my change day. Last night before I went to bed I got all my supplies out and put them on the counter in the bathroom. I keep everything outside the bathroom in a plastic three drawer stand thing that I bought at Walmart.

This morning, I will get up make a cup of tea, drink it and then munch down 3-4 marshmallows, wait 20 mins, take my old appliance off and hop into the shower. It only takes me about five minutes to dry off, apply a little powder if there is irritation, swipe a skin barrier around my stoma (again only of there is any irritation) And then apply the Friars, slap on my flange, attach the bag, clean up the bathroom and out the door.

Perhaps if at night is when you are having your leaks, you could set up before you go to bed. I truly think though, once you get an appliance that works for you, you will be able to go several days without worry about it! This week because of work, I went six days before my change.

Thanks, Ron   It is nice to have everything all in one place and ready to go.  My carry-all is 8.5" x 9.25" and takes up very little space yet it will hold a bunch.  I still want to make up some "kits" with zip-lock sandwich bags, but just have not gotten to it.