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The Skin They're In
Skin Care for Loved Ones with Incontinence
By Kelly Burgess
Sally Leonard, of Mechanicsburg, Md., became concerned when her father-in-law, Frank, 74, developed a skin rash shortly after Alzheimer's left him incontinent. "My husband and I were trying to care for him at home, but didn't really know his skin needed special care," says Leonard.
Unsure of how to help him, she decided to check with his nurse. "The visiting nurse was a big help – she recommended skin care products that were specifically targeted to incontinence," Leonard says. "The answer turned out to be just common sense, but at the time I was so overwhelmed I couldn't really think what to do."
Just as Leonard found, skin care is an important consideration for many adults and their caregivers who are dealing with incontinence. When not handled appropriately, the skin can suffer serious problems, affecting your loved one's quality of life.
"There are definitely special skin care issues with people who have incontinence because their skin is being assaulted by the chemicals in the urine and feces," says Paul Alper, president and founder of The Caregivers Marketplace (www.caregiversmarketplace.com). "Those chemicals can attack the skin and cause skin breakdowns."
While most of these skin conditions are minor, consisting of redness, rash and other minor skin irritations, they can make your loved extremely uncomfortable, so Alper suggests caregivers use a well thought-out regimen of skin care to prevent these problems.
Diane Newman, co-director of the PENN Center for Continence and Pelvic Health at the University of Pennsylvania Health System, says it's particularly crucial to pay attention to good skin care in an elderly person because they tend to have more sensitive skin than a younger person.
Both Newman and Alper agree that a good regimen for skin care should start with keeping your loved one as dry as possible. While that may include using high-quality absorbency products that wick moisture away, such as Depend® disposable absorbent products, it also means checking the product and bedding frequently to see if it's wet or soiled and needs to be changed.
