Trials conducted through a pilot study show indications that these cosmetics may be more effective in maintaining the integrity of the skin in these patients than the products commonly used for this purpose
A study carried out by researchers from the University of Granada and the University of Jaén (UGR and UJA), in collaboration with the company Notaliv Cosmética Natural and the nurses in charge of ostomy consultations at the Virgen de las Nieves Hospital and the San Cecilio University Hospital, has demonstrated the effectiveness of using gels made with Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) to treat peristomal skin in patients with digestive ostomy. This is an innovative study that shows the efficacy of these gels in this type of patients, and the results obtained suggest that these products are more effective than the current ones for maintaining intact or slightly damaged skin in these individuals.
César Hueso Montoro, researcher at the University of Granada and the University of Jaén, and one of the main promoters of this study, explains that patients with digestive ostomy are those who undergo a small surgical opening in the abdomen to facilitate the elimination of urine and feces. These patients require the use of a bag attached to the skin to facilitate intestinal evacuation. «Most of these cases occur in patients with colon or rectal cancer, although they can also occur in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases or trauma,» adds the expert.
These evacuation devices usually have a disc that adheres to the skin, with a bag hanging from it to collect the feces and urine evacuated through the opening. The researchers emphasize that the skin pressed by the disc (peristomal skin) is very vulnerable and subjected to pressure, not only due to the disc itself, but also because leaks can sometimes occur during evacuation. «In ostomy consultations, the nurse expert in the care of these patients always emphasizes the importance of caring for and maintaining the integrity of the peristomal skin to prevent its deterioration,» highlights the researcher, who emphasizes that «up to 80% of ostomized individuals end up having some complication in the skin.» These complications greatly affect the quality of life of the patient and represent a significant cost for the healthcare system.
«Generally, it was recommended not to use oily products to treat peristomal skin, as it was thought that it could complicate the adhesion of the disc, which is why Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) was ruled out,» says César Hueso. «However, we have come across patients who, despite these recommendations, used cosmetics made with olive oil and did not experience any complications. This indicated that there had been little research on the subject.» At this point, the group of researchers contacted the company Notaliv, specialized in natural cosmetics made with olive oil, who manufactured an organic EVOO bath gel for the mentioned study, as organic oils have more antioxidant properties and are beneficial for the body.
Using this gel, the group conducted a comparative pilot study with 21 patients from the ostomy consultations of the mentioned Granada hospitals. Eleven of them used this gel, while nine used other cosmetics that did not contain EVOO for maintaining their peristomal skin. According to the research team, the results have demonstrated, first of all, that this gel is a safe product for treating the skin in ostomy patients, as none of the patients reported any complications in the use of the gel regarding the adhesion of the disc. And secondly, there are indications that cosmetics with EVOO may be more effective in maintaining intact peristomal skin in these patients.
The researcher from the University of Granada explains that these are cosmetic gels, not pharmacological ones, so their effectiveness is focused on maintaining the peristomal skin when it is in an intact or slightly deteriorated state, which corresponds to the profile of the individuals included in the trial. He emphasizes that the great advancement of this study is opening the door to the use of cosmetics made with Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO), which has great benefits for skincare in these types of patients. The next steps in this line of research will focus on expanding the study sample to demonstrate these results in a larger number of patients and studying the effect of products made with EVOO on more deteriorated skin. Therefore, the main challenge is to obtain funding to continue the research.
César Hueso highlights the work carried out together with Concepción Capilla Díaz, a professor in the Department of Nursing at the UGR. Both of them are members of the multidisciplinary research group CTS-436 and researchers at the Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada. He also acknowledges the advice received from Professor and researcher Francisco Pedro García Fernández from the University of Jaén, the current coordinator of the Advanced Studies Chair in Wound Care at UJA, as well as the collaboration of the rest of the research team composed of nurses Josefa Martín Cebrián, Rosa Huertas Fernández, Inmaculada Sánchez Crisol, and Noelia Moya Muñoz. Finally, he gives special mention to the participants who voluntarily agreed to be part of this study.
The results of this research have been published in the prestigious scientific journal Journal of Tissue Viability.
Further information:
César Hueso-Montoro
Email: cesarhueso@ugr.es
