Can anyone advise me on how to put dermovate cream inside the back passage?

Hi there,

I used to have the same problem and started taking 50 mg of zinc a day in tablet form and all of th einternal tears healed up and i very rarely have external tears anymore, if i do they usually heal up by the next day. Definitely worth a try, its been my saviour and i stumbles across it by accident. I used to not be able to sit after passing a bowel movement for about 7 hours cuz it was so sore. Please give it a go and remember to have a bowl of bran cereal and drink plently of water. Best of luck.

Hi Kezzo,

Thank you for the advice about zinc in tablet form, which I will try to get hold of. I am drinking vast amounts of water at present and this is helping. Can't say water is my favourite drink, a bit tasteless in my view. Glad things are working for you. How did you hear about zinc and do you get it on prescription? Thanks again and keep well!

Horses

I was doing a lot of research for alternative treatments for internal fissures and read an article once about how Egyptians used it to heal wounds quickly so i thought why not. i went to the chemist to get zinc cream initially but they didn't have it so i got high strength tablets, didn't really think it would help that much but i couldn't have been more wrong, i took 50 for a few days, then 75mg for two days then 100mg for two days. Took a break for a few days cuz i noticed i was gettin better then boom back they came so i repeated the cycle except only took a break of one day and then stayed on 50mg per day every since. that was weeks ago and i have no internal anal tears now THANK JESUS. i used to have about three chronic tears inside. I rarely tear externally, it usually just gets a bit red after a bowel movement but that's it. The upper RDA is 40 per day but i couldn't find any studies that said 50 had negative effects to take regularly. The very high doses i took at the start are also ok as a once off. And another big thing that helped and that i still use everyday is high potency vitamin e oil. After every BM i wash the area, and rub it externally and internally on my anus. Sex used to be out of the question for me too wit the tears and i had sex three times in one night a couple weeks ago with very little pain. The only time i felt pain was the third time in the morning which could have possibly been due to the fact that the zinc tablet had worn off from the day before. Bear in mind that sex was excruciating before this, three times let alone one would have literally torn my vagina in two! i also put vitamin e oil at the entrance to my vagina as that's where it used to tear. Therese a few different types of zinc, ill read the bottle of my one for you when i get home. I really think it will help you too. Stay in touch, i want to know how you are gettin on x

Also no need for a prescription you can get it in any health food shop and most chemists. I firmly believe in alternative treatments

Hi kezzo, I have just bought zinc tablets strength 40 and see that you started with 50. I will give it a couple of days and then buy the next strength which, in my local chemist, is 200!!! Hope that isn't too strong. A doctor at the surgery wasn't able to give me a fixed reply about whether it was good or not, so I am following your good example and going for it... Will let you know if the results are positive. I sure need something that wortks, as it is very painful these days. Thank you so much for all your advice, it has given me hope in my hour of need!! Does that sound too dramatic? Hope you are well xx

Hey!! That's great.. I really hope you find some relief with them and at least you know, it cant be doing you any harm even if it doesn't work for you but hopefully it will. I prob wouldn't go for the 200mg if I were you, anything over 100mg per day will prob make u feel sick.. Id say take two of the 40mg tablets (one after breakfast, and one after dinner) for a week or two and see how you feel. Remember zinc is responsible for new cel growth and healing of damaged cells so it will work to some degree. Also they are different kinds of zinc. What does yours say on the bottle? Apparently different kinds can work better for different people. And also, I would highly recommend you getting a high potency vitamin e oil, mine is 45,000 strength. After a bowel movement, if possible, I wash the area and rub in the oil outside and inside the anus. It did hurt a little at the beginning because I was rubbing open tears inside and out but hang in there. I used the vitamin e oil from the beginning and noticed it helped to keep everything clean and elastic, and im pretty sure one of the internal tears was infected once because I noticed a weird smell when going to bathroom (gross I know) so then I started using the oil, and within a week or two the smell was gone, however the vitamin e oil alone didn't seem to be enough to completely heal the fissures, they still kept tearing open. So that's when I decided to put in a treatment plan and tackle it from all angles, inside and out including diet. So start eating one bowl of bran cereal in the mornings, start using vitamin e oil on the area and start taking the zinc twice a day after meals. Always after food or u might feel sick. Give yourself the best possible chance of healing, and healing quickly. You can do it, I firmly believe it. xx

Hi kezzo, Looking at the box it says 70mg, although when I was in the chemist I was sure it said 40!! Oh well, that is a good thing as far as I am concerned. It says on the box Zinc Gluconate and the 200mg had another name on it, but I can't remember. I think I shall still to 70mg for the moment, unless you tell me otherwise. I took my first tablet last night, so will take them every evening and see what happens. If nothing, then I will up the dose! What type do you take by the way?

Do you use vitamin e oil as a moisturiser? Do you think we get fissures because the skin has thinned, due to dermovate? This is my constant worry. I am always being told not to use it unless it is necessary, but rarely a day goes by when it is not necessary. I have to force myself not to use it for a couple of days, just to give my skin a break, but then I start itching. What a life! I get really frightened at the idea that I might suddenly have a stroke and no-one really knows much about LS and I wouldn't get washed properly. Someone used the word "pristine" and it has stayed in my mind. We really have to keep "pristine" all the time!

Better go and do some housework... bye for now!

HI! Mine is also zinc gluconate. Yes that's a good idea taking a night (after eating something) because I think the body does its best healing at night. I sometimes put the vitamin e oil under my eyes also as a moisturizer but that is the only other place I use as it would be to try to rub it in everywhere because the oil is quite quick is it really helps to lubricate the skin and give it back some elasticity.

Have you had a biopsy to confirm LS? I think the thing with LS to remember is that even when you have been diagnosed, and use the steroid cream, the skin that was thinned out stays thinned out and you must try to rebuild it by using estrogen and testosterone creams and definitely by moisturizering down there to help give back some elasticity and stretch. If you cant get your hands on estrogen and testosterone creams, definitely keep the area well moisturised. You want to be in less pain as possible! And yes you're right, keeping the area pristine is so important especially with open fissures. Ok so if you're on 70mg per tablet, then leave it at that for now and if you want to increase it, maybe take one and half tablets per day but I wouldn't go higher than 100mg because the higher does of zinc you take, the less copper your body will absorb and that can lead to you feeling sick etc. To counteract this, you could get a good multivitamin drink with copper in it, even if it only has 2.5mg of copper, that's better than nothing. It can be a slow process healing fissures, especially if there is an underlying skin condition so defintiely get your hands on some high potency pure vitamin e oil to try speed thing up, and start rubbing in to the effected skin. Deep fissures can take anywhere from6 weeks to 3 months to heal because before this time, they can very easily rip open as we both know im sure!

I've never actually used steroid cream for mine, as when I went to get the biopsy, I changed my mind because the doctor would only take it from the entrance to the vagina and not around the anus where it used to tear. And I sure as well didn't want any extra tears around my vagina that might not heal properly so I decided against it. But from my research steroid creams seems to be ok to use for LS, intensive at the start from diagnosis for a couple of months, like twice per day, then decrease the amount you use after a couple of months, to once a day, then three times a week or whatever low dose suits you. How often have you been using it?

Where about are you living in the world? Have you even heard of stem cell therapy for LS? It is new but there are published scientific journals showing it be an effective treatment, its available in Italy and California, It does seem to have amazing results. If it hurts the next time I have sex, I am highly considering going over to Italy to have it done. Iv been talking to the doctor who does it and he is such a nice man.

http://lichensclerosus.org/italian-stem-cell-treatment/

Here is a published study showing its effectiveness in treating LS - http://journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/Fulltext/2010/10000/New_Surgical_Approach_to_Lichen_Sclerosus_of_the.73.aspx

And here is a one about the effects of using steroid creams - http://journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/Fulltext/2010/10000/New_Surgical_Approach_to_Lichen_Sclerosus_of_the.73.aspx

hope you're doing ok xx hope I didn't bombard you with too much info haha!

Hi kezzo, How on earth do you manage without steroid creams? Do you suffer with itching, or is it just painful? When it is really itchy, I am literally desperate to get hold of dermovate to get some form of relief and it can last for days like this! I do believe moisturising is absolutely essential and am doing this much more than before, but with all the washing as well it seems to be a full time occupation. I have gone through all the twice a day, once a day, etc. but I don't think I would be able to completely stop using it.

I am very interested in the stem cell therapy for LS you were mentioning. My husband is working in Italy at present and I go over there to join him every so often. Do you know where in Italy? I live in the UK, where do you live? You sound very knowledgeable. How long have you had LS?

The fissure, or fissures more likely, is/are very painful right now. I just have to put up with it, although I dread going to the loo!

Thought I had replied to this site but apparently not.

Comfrey oil is excellent for mucus membrane and soft tissue areas and it helps to build tissue not thin it out like cortisone etc. I had nasty fisure which healed in a week after being a problem for three months.

The oil is really cheap from a well know Heath shop and also good for general skin hydration without being too oily.

Collagen tablets are also good to help repair tissue but is more expensive

Hi Tiny T, Thank you for your comments and I have made a note of the two products, which are quite unknown to me. How long have you had LS and do you use a steroid cream, or just the Comfrey oil. I am using dermovate quite a lot and am very keen to find an alternative. I am trying zinc tablets, as suggested by kezzo and am hoping that these will be a miracle cure for me, but it may take time.

What is the well known Health Shop and where do you come from?

How did you find out about these products? So many questions, you are probably muttering to yourself and I apologise.

Thanks again and please keep in touch, as it is always nice to know there is someone else who understands the LS and LP dilemma

Keep healthy!

I've had LS for seven years now. I have it in the vulval and anal areas, ouch!!! I don't use my steroid cream very often and when I do just a couple of applications is enough to stop the soreness and itching.

I only ever bath or shower using CETRABEN moisturiser used as an emollient. I stick to FAIRY washing powder for my clothes.

After I have opened my bowels I use baby wipes (rinsed under the tap first, don't want any of those chemicals near me!!!). Then apply CETRABEN moisturiser. This works for me so hope this could help you.

Just read this message about CETRABEN and will give it a go. I have been using AQUEOUS cream for washing up until now. Do you use softeners with your washing? I tend to use them, but perhaps I shouldn't??

I will buy Fairy asap.

THANKS for all your comments, which have been very useful. What a boon this site is!

Bye for now xx

I messaged you all the king horses! Hope everyone is doing ok.

xx

All kings horses......

I hope the fairy washing powder/soap is working well for you??? And you managed to purchase some CETREBEN moisturiser. Yes I can still use fabric softener on my clothes, luckily that seems to be ok.

I may try some comfrey oil myself although I'm rather hesitant as my Doctor has said most over the counter products contain extra additives and perfumes so I'm rather unsure.

Been off the steroids for almost a month now and I actually feel well again (had colonoscopy last week but more on that when the biopsy reports come in)....

Keep well x