What, besides diabetes, causes slow wound healing? (painful, infection, blood pressure)

[southbel]

I have a very bad problem with slow wound healing. As a result, I have been tested multiple times for diabetes, all to show blood sugars are even better than normal. If I get one scratch, it seems to linger for months. I have had several surgeries and have doctors scratching their heads as to why my wounds will not close up and heal properly. Usually takes anywhere between 6 months to a year to finally get the wounds to close up. I have to endure very painful procedures to debride the wounds to help get the wound to close. Also, I end up getting very ugly scars.

Anyone have an idea why this would occur? I am anxious to find an answer to this problem as it plagues me.

[jambo101]

If you are taking aspirin it would tend to thin out the blood.
Or maybe something you are eating regularly could be causing the problem.Google

[southbel]

Originally Posted by jambo101

If you are taking aspirin it would tend to thin out the blood.
Or maybe something you are eating regularly could be causing the problem.Google

Thanks for the information. Looking through the list, nothing really stood out as something I eat frequently. I also have incredibly low blood pressure - I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

[harry chickpea]

Originally Posted by southbel

Thanks for the information. Looking through the list, nothing really stood out as something I eat frequently. I also have incredibly low blood pressure - I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

I was going to suggest arterial narrowing, but that would have a similar effect of reducing blood flow to the site.

[kronenborg]

any number of things can slow down wound healing (too many to list here). some common ones (aside from diabetes) include:

- smoking - as well as being bad for your lungs and heart, smoking will most definitely slow down the healing following an injury, or post-surgery
- age - not a great deal you can do about this one - the older we get, the slower our cells replicate to replace damaged tissue, including skin
- obesity - fatty tissue doesn't have enough a great blood supply, so if you have a deep wound (e.g. post operatively) there is a greater chance of wound breakdown
- infection - not only of the wound itself, but if you have a systemic infection, it will likely slow down the speed at which the a wound will heal
- dehydration - wounds heal best in a moist environment which is facilitated by most modern wound dressings. if the wound gets dehydrated, healing takes longer, and the outcome is generally worse
- drugs - steroids and some anti inflammatory drugs will slow down wound healing
- poor diet - particularly deficiencies of vitamin C and zinc
- poor circulation
- any chronic illness - due to a combination of any of the above factors, but also due to your immune system being occupied with something more serious.

i dont know if any of these apply to you - it could just be that its "one of those things", or that you've been unlucky with respect to your surgical experiences.

[kronenborg]

one other thought - repeated surgery on the same location will often cause issues with healing - the previously scarred tissue does not heal nearly as well as a new incision.

[texdav]

Anything that hurts the circulation will have the same effect.

[southbel]

Thank you all for your suggestions. I wonder if I am just "different" as I have not yet been able to find any specific reason this occurs. The only other thing "different" about me, as I stated before is my extremely low blood pressue (80/40). I do worry about this as I age because apparently your ability to heal as you age is also compromised.

[kamoshika]

Have you ever tried Manuka honey for your wounds? It has an outstanding reputation for wound treatment and can be purchased on Amazon.

[chuck_steak]

My wound care nurse suggested upping my protein for wound healing.