[mysharonna]

Ouch!
All of a sudden all of my fingertips are splitting open and bleeding at the same time...long, jagged rips all along the skin!

Can prednisone cause this or is it just another wonderful, bizarre lupus thing?
Anyone else get this?

Sharon

 

[keebler]

(((Sharon)))

That sounds very painful.

Are you fingers swollen? Have you tried any new soaps or lotions?

Maybe a call to your doctor? It is a new symptom.

Take care,
Lyn

 

[lin]

sharon, keep them out of water as much as you can, mine have gone very very dry, and cracked, not bleeding like your's, but not in good nick either, i have to keep aplying hand cream on them loads through out the day,

i have got lots of warts on my fingers so they are hurting me too, as its the immunosuppressents thats doing that, and i have to go have them zapped offten at the hospital.......

go see your gp if you cant get it under control let us know#
take care Lin xx

 

[Pink Pearl]

I often get this in winter. I showed it to my rheumy and his response was it is common with sle and sjogren's. Apparently has something to do about the oil and moisture production of the skin.

What I have found helps when I am doing things like opening tab cans, handling a lot of paper, doing dishes by hand, is to use the covers that "accountants" used to use. (I can't handle gloves as my hands get too sweaty in them) They are available at most stationery supply stores like Office Max and Staples. Find them in the area with paper clips and such. They come about a dozen to a box.

If I do a lot of sewing I find that it happens more often. Perhaps the fabric pulls moisture out of the skin. So, I keep a non-greasy lotion at hand and use it often. I have hand lotion bottles all over the house.
One of my absolute favorites is the Jafra Almond hand and body lotion. It soaks in really well and my skin doesn't feel slimmy. I find using an antibiotic ointment, like Neosporin plus pain relief, helps to let them heal quickly.
[Jafra is sold thru local dealers, like Avon, but you can also order it online.]
Sally

 

[cad]

Hi Sharon,
Sorry about your hands, I really empathise!
My hands are so dry at the moment that they lietterally feel like sandpaper, I also have about 15 of these cuts across my hands and mine bleed too. They are very painful. I think the cold weather makes it worse and also hands being wet then dry. You can get cream from the doc which moisturises but also cleanses the hands so you can reduced handwashing a bit. I would advise following advice already given find a good moisturiser and apply as much as possible, try to keep hands warm and try to keep them from being in and out if water as much as possible.
I have aways had dry skin but I am sure that this is made worse by the disease.

I hope they get better for you soon.

Take Care

Cassie

 

[ALWIN]

Hi there

the folds in the creases of my thumbs split and bleed because I have extremely dry skin, and my hands are about the worst area. The skin around my nails tends to split and is thickened too.

I have found I have to wear gloves to wash up or clean and reapply hand cream regularly.

I use The Body Shop Hemp Hand Cream which I order on line and get delivered because we do not have a Body shop close by.

I also use Atrixo.

Aqueous Cream is useful for cleansing the skin without drying it and can be very cheap if you buy supermarket's own brands.

Prednisolone does affect the skin if used long term. Steroids tend to thin skin.

Your doctor might have some better skin solutions if that is the cause. Anticoagulants and a range of medications can cause the type of problem you describe.

In my case I think it is related to dryness caused by Sjogren's.

Good luck!

 

[Lily]

(((((((((((((((Sharon))))))))))) Are they cracks or rips? If they are cracks and you have Sjogren's or just extremely dry skin then I fully sympathise. I usually get that pretty bad in winter. It's summer here though and my feet are just literally cracking up.

With hands I do what Alwin does and absolutely have to wear gloves to wash up. I also moisturise a few times during the day and try to use a soap alternative (cetaphil or something similar). Then at night I use something called anhydrous lanolin (wool fat) which is gluggy and disgusting :hehe: but is the only thing that helps. After I put that on I wear fine cotton gloves over my hands all night. If they are really really bad then my doc has me wrap them in cling wrap after putting the wool fat on and then put the cotton gloves over that.

It's so painful and never seems to clear up without pretty aggressive attention doing the above. I'm off to 'wrap' my feet right now, even though it's been a stinking hot day here my feet hurt and bleed if I don't - could be fun sleeping with socks on in this weather though

hugs,

Lily

 

[sandy123]

Hi Sharon

Like you i have the same problem with fingers splitting,i have tried loads of hand cream and it has taken a long time to heal, i mentioned this to my doctor and he prescribed Hydromol Ointment which seems to work for me.
You could mention this to your gp if you have not used this ointment.

Hugs Sandy

 

[cemc]

Definitely mention this to your doctor. I might be totally off-beam here, but is there any possibility of you having a lupus overlap syndrome? I know scleroderma has loads of problems with cracking and ulceration of fingertips.

 

[ALWIN]

Just to support Lily on the cotton gloves.

I also use these during the night after putting heavy moisturiser on my hands.

They really do help and are yet another thing you can buy on the internet - again, mine came from the Body Shop.

They also stop you from ripping your skin with your nails in the night if you itch generally. I used to wake up with scratches all over my forearms.

Good luck.

 

[julsie]

Hello Sharon,
It's not nice.A friend has tried heel balm on her hands and says it works very well,
julsie

 

[Maia]

The best thing I've found is simple vaseline with those cotton gloves. On both hands and feet - I will put it on every night before I go to bed and use Neutrogena Hand Therapy during the day (original forumula) as it is also basically vaseline. Vaseline is pretty cheap too which is also a plus.

Other tips I have are to try to spend no more than 5 minutes in the shower or bath, and to use just slightly warm water instead of hot water. Any time beyond 5 minutes in the shower is drying, especially true the hotter the water. Even though this is winter/germ time, it's best to minimize hand washing too until the severity of this problem is under control. Use moisturizer after every hand washing too!

Hope you can get it under control soon - & do mention it to your doctor and possibly take pictures (I'm hoping it won't be too bad by the time your doctor sees it!). If you can't improve it within a few days to a week then it's probably worth seeing your doctor about - don't want an infection setting in!

 

[Clare.T]

Not much of a birthday present ((( Sharon))). I have heard of this several times but I don't know why it happens unless it's some sort of vasculopathy.
Other possibly helpful products might be Aquaphor which always seemed to me better than vaseline and does advertise itself as healing, but maybe that's because it cost more, and a product with a high urea content as advised for diabetics who often suffer from splitting hands and feet. Prescription strength might be even better. I have also heard of using Vicks this way - the other stuff in it is reckoned to actively help with healing.
I like tea tree oil as an acknowledged antiseptic/ antibiotic and feel sure it helps speed healing. I would try a patch test first to make sure you aren't one of the rare people who is allergic to it.
Another possibility might be using liquid band aid.
I hope it clears up very soon

Many Hugs
Clare

 

[Lily]

Hi again,

I find that Vaseline is just sucked right in and isn't sufficient enough for this type of problem. The wool fat (anhydrous lanolin) is much much thicker and penetrating. It's also very cheap and available at pharmacies here, I have even bought the cotton gloves in our local supermarket for about $1 AU for two pairs.

Hope you get some relief this is no fun at all and especially on your birthday............hope you managed to enjoy it a little.

PS Sorry you are unwell but glad you are back, that song is still going round in my head you know :lol:

love
Lily

 

[onetay]

Sharon,
I have had that happen before. I would try hand cream not lotion but cream. I get mine from bath and body and it does help. It might burn at first because it is all open but hang in there it will heal it also. I am not sure why this happens.
Tammy

 

[Pink Pearl]

Tammy's post reminded me of something different I have done this year. I now use lotion antibacterial hand soap from Bath & Body store. I have used several different ones, so it obviously didn't matter which one. I KNOW there are a LOT of things running in the wind now about using too many antibacterial things, but I find this really helps. Since I have not had a single split finger tip so far this winter, I am going to think I was right on with it. I keep a bottle of hand lotion by each faucet and in the living room by my chair. I also have one here at my desk.....covered all bases.

I also make sure to wear gloves outside in winter. It is important in helping to keep the moisture in your skin. I wear gloves outside in summer to work in the garden or greenhouse.
Sally

 

[tabsboy]

hi mysharoona
i am having the same problem at the moment.my finger tips/fingers/palms.are all spliting/cracking open.and it is very sore.i have tried moisturising creams.but they do not really help.so i am off to see the doctor tonight.i have lupus[sle] and sjogren sydrome.

 

[mysharonna]

Thanks everyone for all of the great suggestions!

I also started experimenting with stuff I had in the house and found something that gave me some relief... Since I just stopped nursing, I had a tube of Lansinoh lanolin breast cream in the house...figured if it could heal a cracked nipple it could heal ANYTHING!!! It did help alot.

The gloves at night with cream are a good idea..I will try that tonight.

Handwashing has been an issue here..since hubby has now come down with pneumonia and spent my birthday eve in the emergency room so we are just trying to keep it away from the little ones!

Have a nice day!
Sharon

 

[Lily]

Hi Sharon,

That's the same stuff I use just a different name it's pure lanolin nothing added thick and sticky but does the trick! Hope it helps.

With the handwashing maybe you could try a soap substitute product with a neutral pH.

love
Lily

 

[florie]

Ouch.............

I have experienced that myself before i found out i had lupus.(sle)

At the time I used fake finger nails. So possibly the glue made this reaction.
I worked in a nursing home, in the laundry room. Constant hand washing and pulling wet clothes from the washer, and later pulling them out of the hot dryer. Well my finger tips got so swollen,and were bleeding. I couldn't fold the laundry for my tips were so roar and tender i would bleed on the clean laundry. Possibly, nail tips was a problem, heat was another,constant hand washing.

Later on I found out I had lupus.
hope this has helped. Florie