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Preventing Blisters

Paul Auerbach, M.D.

Blisters are the bane of hikers. Last October, a group of us hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, and blisters nearly knocked a couple of my companions off the trail. The most common causes of blister formation are improperly fitted footwear, new (stiff) footwear, and the physical forces of pressure, rubbing, moisture, and heat. We had all of that as we negotiated long days on hot, dusty, and rocky trails. The time to treat a blister is before you get it, when you just begin to notice the irritation, and perhaps only have reddened skin (a “hot spot”). Before the fluid-filled blister develops, you still have a chance to prevent it. That can be done with a commercial bandage (like the ingenious Blist-O-Ban bandage shown above in the photo); a donut of Molefoam or Moleskin with a piece of Spenco 2nd Skin hydrogel positioned in the hole of the donut; or a padded bandage covered with tape. The best way I have found to avoid blisters is to wear a pair of thin liner socks underneath my hiking socks, so that the friction occurs between the two sock layers, rather than between the sock and the foot.

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2 Comments:

  • At Fri Jul 21, 02:15:00 PM 2006, Blogger Sam Winebaum said…

    Last summer our family did the Tour du Mont Blanc, 100 beautiful and hot miles of trail around Western Europe's highest peak. To treat hot spots on the feet we effectively used a combination of a liquid bandage such as NewSkin and duct tape which we had wrapped around water bottles.

     
  • At Sat Sep 08, 03:22:00 PM 2007, Anonymous John Nolan said…

    I am looking for help with a problem I have when I do alot of heavy lifting or use my hands on tools or things that involves alot of vibration ie; lawn mower or hand saw. within an hour or so I experiance reddening and itching deep under the skin, followed a hardening of the area and deep swelling much like a deep blister. bty the next day this gone. Any Ideas or recomendations?

     

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