Moleskin - Relief from Blisters

Author: alicemerry | Posted: 01.01.2012

Most of us have experienced blisters at one time or another. Blisters look like bubbles that appear on skin and are filled with fluid. Most often they don’t require any treatment and heal in a short while. They are normally caused by friction and irritation to the skin such as from new shoes. Blisters are a type of pressure ulcer but can easily be prevented or treated by the application of moleskin. However, for other pressure ulcers, especially in older people, it is not as simple as putting moleskin or a dressing like Coban to treat it.

Chronic wounds such as pressure ulcers, venous leg ulcers and diabetic ulcers can be very difficult to treat in older people. Most current treatments are unable to cure chronic wounds. However, a new study at the University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine shares a promising discovery. According to this research, hormone replacement therapy (HRT), which is used to treat menopause related problems in women, may help in preventing chronic wounds.

David Margolis, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Dermatology at the University Of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine studied the medical records of 44,195 post menopausal women. He found that older female patients, who have had hormone replacement therapy, are relatively less likely to suffer from pressure ulcers and venous leg ulcers.

"Our research indicates that patients receiving HRT are around 35 percent less likely to develop a venous leg ulcer or pressure ulcer, which we view as early evidence that HRT may have a place in preventing chronic wounds," said Margolis.

This research definitely gives new hope to elderly who suffer from chronic wounds. However, there are several issues with hormone replacement therapy that make it a catch-22. This therapy was found to be associated with some serious side effects including endometrial cancer, breast cancer, ovarian cancer, increased risk of blood clots, stroke and heart attack.

"I think we swung too positive on hormone therapy in the past and then we went too negative," said Isaac Schiff, MD, chief of obstetrics and gynecology at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

More recent studies question the outright rejection of HRT as a treatment because it offers benefits as well and it is more a matter of weighing the risk and benefits.

Medical practitioners like Shelley R. Salpeter, MD, a clinical professor of medicine at Stanford University's School of Medicine present the positive side of HRT, "We have evidence that hormone therapy can prevent heart disease, hip fractures, and osteoporosis, and that it cuts the risk of developing diabetes by 30% in younger women."



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