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Help Requested for Complication from an Old Burn

Posted By Kt (Usa) on 10/09/2015

Last spring as I was pouring boiling water on poison ivy plants, the water splashed on the bridge of my foot just above the ankle. My sock stuck to the "rippled" skin at the bend and when I removed the sock my skin came off. I applied peroxide then covered the burned areas with lubricating jelly and a large waterproof band-aid for three days. After the initial three days I changed the band-aid every two or three days after painting the burned areas with Merthiolate. I don't remember how long it took to heal but it never got infected and I thought all was well.

Over the last few months, I have been feeling something deep at the joint of that ankle just under where the burned areas were. I don't know whether I'm reacting to whatever was used to remove the color from the Merthiolate or the adhesive of the waterproof band-aid. Different adhesives can cause different reactions. I know this because the adhesive used in the doctor's office for an EKG was different from the adhesive used in the ER, to which I had a terrible reaction.

Has anyone heard of something like this? I don't think my PCP would be of any help for this. There is no doubt I had a blood clot in one of my calves. I had complained to him about this and he ordered an ultrasound but nothing was found. As the throbbing worsened and I found remedies I applied here on EC, it cleared up. No tests have been done, but broken veins are visible and there is a very slight indentation where it appears there has been some muscle tissue that has wasted away.

Replied by Mama To Many (Tennessee) on 10/10/2015

Dear Kt,

So, are you saying that what you are feeling at the site of the old burn is a suspected blood clot or is the blood clot a different issue?

Are you having pain at the area of the burn?

My initial thought is, if your body still has some healing to do where you had the burn, I would suggest a comfrey salve. Castor oil topically may also be helpful.

~Mama to Many~

Replied by Kt (Usa) on 10/10/2015

Dear MtM, The blood clot was a different issue. I was giving a reason why I have lost faith with my PCP. There was also a suspected cyst on my ovary but my ovaries had been removed. He didn't recommend any follow up for that either.

The pain is under where the burns were and feels like it could be some internal inflammation. It is worsened when my sock squeezes that area. I have to pull the sock down, over my heel to my arch. Your initial thought is probably correct. Maybe because it is in the "bend" scar tissue could be "pulling" as it is trying to heal. Last night I took a couple aspirin before I went to bed.

We are down to one vehicle so I am without transportation. Today I started taking a little more than 1/4 tsp. of turmeric then 1/2 tsp. cayenne and a little later 1/4 tsp. of ginger. One of them, or a combination, seems to be working.

Hindsight is 20/20 and I had been eating commercial bread, mustard and liverwurst...so there is more proof of the effects of hidden sources of MSG. The common table salt in those products also contributes to inflammation. You would think, by now, I would think before I ate what I know I shouldn't.

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