Assistive devices/Ascites and ankle swelling

[Guest guest]

As Pam mentioned the elastic/curly shoe laces are a great invention. After

tx bending over can be both difficult and painful. My sister who had

experienced such discomfort after a total colectomy for UC gave me some

curly laces. Using them in my shoes made getting dressed a bit easier after

my tx. I continue to use them in the running shoes I wear around the house.

While ascites and ankle swelling are not related in that they cause one

another, they are related in the way that they occur in chronic liver

disease. The decreased production of osmotic proteins produced by the liver

and the fibrosis of the liver resulting in restricted blood flow from the

lower half of the body results in extravasation (leaking) of plasma from

your blood vessels into the peritoneal space (your abdomen around the

internal organs) and the tissue in your lower legs. It can happen in other

tissue but it's usually seen in the legs/feet/ankles because it tends to

flow to the lowest area of the body. If you lie in bed continuously it will

collect in the tissue over your lower back, for example.

--

Aubrey

MD, PSC 1981, Psoriatic Arthritis 1986, UC 1991, LTX 10/5/98