[RacingAxe]

My wife found an area of black (like a bruise) on the bottom of my heel. There are also two small red dots that she says look like blood blisters. I wouldn't think pressure sores are common on the bottom of the heel but more to the back. I'm dealing with pressure sores on my bony butt right now and don't think I can handle much more laying down. My shoulder is getting weak from so much laying on my side. I just ordered a standing frame so I can stand instead of lay to take the pressure off but if I have the start of a pressure sore on my heel it may not be an option.
I have a loaner wheelchair right now and it has bolts to hold the heel strap on the foot rest. Seems like this bolt could be a logical source to cause a bruise on the heel. What do any of you think about the likelyhood that this is a pressure sore vs. a bruise? What signs should I look for to help me determine what it is?

[DaveP]

Sounds exactly like what I had when I first came out of hospital in '91. Just before leaving, the nurses were soaking my feet to remove hard skin etc and discovered there was something in my heal. As they removed more skin, they found what they said must've been an old blood blister or something. They kept soaking the foot and eventually "dug" it out. It left a hole in my heal, which took ages to heal up, but it eventually healed and no problem standing on it etc.

No one could explain what could've caused this but they reckoned is was probably from before my accident and nothing related - ie not a pressure sore.

[RacingAxe]

DaveP, on Oct 29 2006, 10:55 AM, said:

Sounds exactly like what I had when I first came out of hospital in '91. Just before leaving, the nurses were soaking my feet to remove hard skin etc and discovered there was something in my heal. As they removed more skin, they found what they said must've been an old blood blister or something. They kept soaking the foot and eventually "dug" it out. It left a hole in my heal, which took ages to heal up, but it eventually healed and no problem standing on it etc.

No one could explain what could've caused this but they reckoned is was probably from before my accident and nothing related - ie not a pressure sore.

Thanks DaveP. I hope it's not a pressure sore because I want to start outpatient therapy in the next week or so and am hoping this won't delay it.

[bigsmiles]

Hi....my boyfriend had just what you discribed and thought he had maybe bumped it when transfering to his shower chair. However i thought it was the start of a sore and D/N agreed it was so i put a gauze like dressing over it for about a week so his shoe wouldn't rub against it.(did the trick) and placed a pillow under his calves at night, what with his spasms being so bad though the pillow was never in position in the morning. Anyway after about a month it started to peel off and did at long last drop off whole....horray

[Nichole]

I actually have what sounds to be the exact same thing on my heal right now lol. I've had them before, and they're just blood blisters. I get them because sometimes my spasms are so bad, that i actually pick my foot up, and slam it against the metal footplate on my chair! I've never really had a problem with them, except that they are a little painful, much like a bruise, but i have good feeling. All i do is let them work to the surface. That's about all anyone can do, injured or not.

[juls]

I've also had one, but it was more of a blood blister..i just kept it well moisturised and wore thongs for a while so they wern't putting any pressure on it

[Mary]

My boyfriend had the same sore on his heel abt 3 months ago but now its all peeled off and healed. We put ice on it and he did not wear socks for a while and that did the trick. Ice helps.

[RacingAxe]

Thank you all for your input, it helps to ease my anxiety about this potentially being a pressure sore. I had a visit from a nurse who specializes in wound care and she could not identify it as being a pressure sore. So that is more confirmation! I will keep an eye on it and let you know what happens.

[DaveP]

By the sounds of it, it's best to slowly remove the skin around it until the blood blister it can be removed, instead of cutting it out as my one was. The wound ended up quite deep and took ages and ages to heal up.

As the wound was under my heel, I couldn't see it, so wasn't sure how well it was healing, so I went to a doctor to have it checked out. He did the usual proding and poking so I screamed, "Ahhh!", and he jumped backwards thinking he'd hurt me. I was laughing and laughing and told him I was only joking and couldn't feel a thing. He wasn't amused, so I've not been back to see him since. lol

[htwhlz97]

DaveP, on Oct 31 2006, 03:45 AM, said:

He did the usual proding and poking so I screamed, "Ahhh!", and he jumped backwards thinking he'd hurt me. I was laughing and laughing and told him I was only joking and couldn't feel a thing. He wasn't amused, so I've not been back to see him since. lol

That was comedy! I've done that a couple of times, I think they are more embarassed than anything because thay should know better.
Guess he lost his sense of humor along the way. hehe

[rooster1005]

Man, I needed that laugh. Doctors are so funny. At least he wasn't asking if it hurt. DUH!!
As to the spot on your heel. Watch it, Robert got pressure sores on both of his heels when he came home from the hospital. The foot rest on his chair were not adjusted right. His feet were up too high and there was too much weight on his heels. He now has dimples in both heels from it. Pressure sores are the worse. Robert spent over a year in bed with two on his bum and hip. Had to have surgery and still has to watch not to transfer wrong. We just had a scare last week with the scare on his hip turning red. Scary scary. Hope all is well.

[itsjustme]

Hi all,

I still have to wear the pressure relief boots to bed that they put me in when I went into the hospital. My spasms are so bad that when I'm on my back in bed that my heels just push down into the bed. My lambs wool lined boots have an open heel and keep my heels from touching anything.

But, besides keeping my heels safe, my spasms are so bad that my legs fly off of the bed at night so the open heels of my boots are great for putting a piece of Velcro through and tying my feet together so both legs stay on the bed and under the covers.

[RacingAxe]

Hello Itsjustme, I wear the boots at night too. I am considering other options because they make it just about impossible for me to turn. I am still getting help to turn at night but I know it is getting old. I've read that I should be independant with my turning (and other misc. things) but I am also using a foam overlay to help distribute pressure which sure makes it hard to move. I can go from about 30 degrees propped up to flat but my feet are still tilted to one side at that point. Due to pain in my back, I don't really want to twist any harder to get my feet to flip to the other side.
Back to the pressure sore issue, I've now developed three small dots which began looking like blood blisters on the other heel. I'm almost positive I have not abused that foot by dropping it or in any other way so I am really puzzled about what is going on.

[itsjustme]

Well...RacingAxe...I can't offer any advice on that one because I'm not independent enough to get myself turned over either.

Oh, I did really great in the rehab hospital under optimal conditions but when I got home every inch made a huge difference so my bed mobility is horrible so don't beat yourself up. I depended too much on the rails that obviously I don't have here and yes the surface of the mattress is different. I think that all half of rehab is good for is showing you the possiblities. It's totally up to you to work and figure it out when you get home.

I haven't had anything on my heels like you all are speaking of (knock on wood) so other than the boots I'm out of this one.

[mulepower]

I have the same problem as racing axe has,except my sore is on the bottom of my foot below my little toe. The skin has come of,f while a brown spot has appeared, so i have to go see my wound doctor next week but until then i hope cleaning it with saline and putting some silvadene works. The last time i got cellulitis from an open foot wound. I hope the doc says solar site and xanaderm is all i need to use.I don't ever want to go back on a wound vac.