Saddle Sore Help Needed
David Hallerman
Hi All...
For the first time in many years, I've developed a small saddle sore.
Small, but a real niggling kind of pain, like a little boil in that
area between the anus and the genitals.
What can I do?
Now I've always been very good about showering *before* I ride and
only wearing clean shorts, so I know that part of the drill.
Someone in a LBS suggested a cow udder ointment...now I've heard about
some kind of cow udder balm, I believe, but I forgot what it's
called...and even if I remembered, where would I get it?
Help, please.
David Hallerman
cycl...@walrus.com
Propeloton
Bag Balm
Thomas H. Kunich
In article <33e4cd1...@news.walrus.com>,
David Hallerman <cycl...@walrus.com> wrote:
>Hi All...
>
>For the first time in many years, I've developed a small saddle sore.
>
>Small, but a real niggling kind of pain, like a little boil in that
>area between the anus and the genitals.
>
>some kind of cow udder balm, I believe, but I forgot what it's
>called...and even if I remembered, where would I get it?
"Bag Balm" is the product you're talking about. I understand that it's
available in Walgreen's. I use A&D ointment myself. It's a lot
easier to find though a bit pricier. Same thing though. Lanoline
is the main component and everything else is just advertising.
David Nagoda
I picked up a product called "Chamois Butt'r" at my local bike shop and it
works pretty good. I have heard that Vaseline is also good but have been
apprehensive about that, being able to wash it out of my shorts after a
ride.
=============================================
David Nagoda
Four-Corners Management
e-mail: nago...@flash.net
=============================================
Gordon Snapp
In article <33e4cd1...@news.walrus.com>, cycl...@walrus.com (David
Hallerman) wrote:
> Hi All...
>
> For the first time in many years, I've developed a small saddle sore.
>
I have suffered from irritation in my "nether regions" (the confluence of
my scrotum and inner thighs) for years. It was a daily struggle during a
4-week tour where I averaged 50+ miles/day. It was even worse when I rode
the RAGBRAI one year - 70+ miles/day. (It wasn't just me. I'll never
forget the embarrassed biker who asked the pretty young thing in the small
Iowa drug store what she had for chafing.") I used gobs of Vaseline with
little result. However, about the 5th day I experienced a miracle cure.
My partner on the ride was a nurse who had brought some small medicinal
items. She had a small sample tube of an ointment containing cortisone.
I used it an the irritation was quickly relieved - almost gone completely!
Nowdays I put a little Vaseline on my nether regions prior to a long
ride. If I start feeling irritation I'll put some of the cream on after
the ride. I usually don't have to, except on extended, multi-day rides.
Gary Herman
Without the gory details, I have had a similar chronic problem. After
prescription of an assortment of ineffective antifungal agents, the
miracle medicine was a prescription ointment:
Generic: Nystatic/Triamcin (nystatin plus triamcinalone acetonide),
aka Mycolog.
According to MD, it's an antifungal plus cortisone, normally prescribed
for *diaper rash*.
Immediately effective, symptoms disappeared in a couple of days, but it
took about two weeks of application to eradicate whatever was lurking
there. Last double century and century were irritation-free.
Gary
Wes Prince
On Sun, 03 Aug 1997 18:25:57 GMT, cycl...@walrus.com (David Hallerman) wrote:
>Hi All...
>
>For the first time in many years, I've developed a small saddle sore.
>
>Small, but a real niggling kind of pain, like a little boil in that
>area between the anus and the genitals.
>
>What can I do?
>
>Now I've always been very good about showering *before* I ride and
>only wearing clean shorts, so I know that part of the drill.
>
>Someone in a LBS suggested a cow udder ointment...now I've heard about
>some kind of cow udder balm, I believe, but I forgot what it's
>called...and even if I remembered, where would I get it?
>
>Help, please.
>
>David Hallerman
>cycl...@walrus.com
David,
Saddle sores, or perineal abscesses, can range from trivial and a little
bothersome to truly life threatening. As a student some yrs back, I bore witness
to a fellow dying from poor management by a small physician (unfortunately, it
was my hometown) managing a perianal abscess inappropriately. The fellow was
given some antibiotics and not given appropriate follow up, or was lost to
follow up... the key problem being it was not drained. The fellow showed up at
the local ED near death and was transferred to our state referral hospital to
the surgical service I was on. He was noted to have Necrotizing Fasciitis and
was aggressively debrided. The next day he was picked up by the student (yours
truly) and noted to have been skinned down to the muscle from his lower left
chest to just behind his rectum, his genitalia were spared (miraculously, I've
seen others since not so lucky), and the inner thighs were also skinned. It was
a gruesome sight. He had to go back for multiple debridements, twice daily
whirlpool. He was hard to manage since we his rectum was dangling in the breeze,
we made him stool incontinent, making wound care a big problem. He ended up
getting his rectum closed and a colostomy. He crashed and burned for about a
month and a half before finally dying of sepsis.
I have treated many such lesions initially in the ER. If there is something
there to drain, I drain it. If it is peri-rectal, I get a surgical consult,
since it may tract to the colon ... a big problem. Follow up is needed to insure
healing.
I can't examine you, so I don't know how bad yours is, but I highly recommend
seeking medical attention if you think there's pus in there to drain, or if it
is within a couple of inches of the rectum, and certainly if it is getting
bigger. It may save your life.
To help prevent saddle sores I highly recommend cleaning the area with a Wet One
after bowel movements (they are flushable) to help keep the bacteria count down.
I further recommend lubing up your crotch with Neosporin before each ride. This
helps prevent rash, keeps chafing and skin breakdown to a minimum both of which
are means for bacteria to enter the skin and cause problems, and the antibiotics
may help to keep down the skin flora as you ride.
You must never ride in dirty shorts, and I prefer to hang mine in the sun to
dry, utilizing the UV light to destroy the bacteria remaining after the wash.
Good luck to you with this problem.
Disclaimer:
As a physician and cyclist, I feel a certain obligation to assist fellow
athletes with minor problems. Realize that I am doing so without the benefit of
a full history, physical exam or radiological studies. This can be like asking
me to guess what is inside a black box with only a few clues. I heartily
recommend that you visit a sports medicine physician or other physician if you
do not get better, and certainly if you get worse. A visit to a podiatrist may
be of benefit if the knee is involved and foot problems are suspected, and
certainly for isolated foot problems. Let me know if I can be of further
assistance.
Take care and good luck.
See you on the trail,
Wes <J. Wesley Prince, M.D.>
(wpr...@groupz.net)
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