Darrell: Belly tubes all share the messy problem of the body constantly trying to 'heal' the tube incision. A variety of body chemistries accumulate on the skin around the tube's exit from the body. Under relatively healthy conditions (not infected) these secretions form a kind of gummy scab that eventually dries into a crusty accumulation around the opening.

Regular application of anti-biotic cream or other soothing creams around the site keeps the secretions from forming a ridgid surface, but the whole site becomes gooey and sticky. Allowing the secretions to dry out leaves us with the problem of a scab-type formation around the opening, stuck to body hair and uncomfortably hard. Keep this residue from accumulating. Reach into your shirt a few times a day with a tissue and carefully swab away the gathering goo. Don't agonize over every molecule of the goo. Swabbing too close to the tube just irritates the site. The junk immediately around the opening, (1/16 of an inch) and on the emerging tube itself - leave it. It lubricates the wound and helps water proof the opening. You and your belly will be happier.

I worried and fretted for months about getting my peg site wet in the shower, or even too wet with a cloth. I constantly kept fresh 2X2's hung over the tube site, and they constantly dried onto my skin. Then I met up with some veteran peg users and wised up a bit. Within a month or so of tube insertion, the body has pretty well closed that opening around the tube - and fairly tight. We can't swim or submerge, but the shower poses no real threat. Warm water running over the site will rehydrate the residue on the skin and allow it to be brushed away easily. The site will always be tender, so don't flood it, scrub it, scrape it, staple spindle or mutilate it

The wonderful nurse who instructed me about my peg did a good job, but she has never had one. Many of the things I initally learned about pegs turned out to be only a little useful. Get good advice from knowledgeable people about your peg. And ask several different folks for their perspectives.

Safety tip: If you feel a sneeze coming on while pouring into your tube.... either pinch the tube off for a second, or learn a messy lesson in fluid dynamics. (Though strawberry Ensure does make a very colorful geyser.) And remember, peg tubes are ONLY inserted into people of fine character. We are the few, the proud, the punctured. Be strong. Tom