Flexitol just ain't cutting it, help

[CarrieErbag]

I have been using Flexitol for my really dry feet.
I had bad athletes foot now largely under control, but the sides of my feet are still dry and peeling and nothing is working. Any suggestions please?

I have that footfile and don't think it's as good as my Leighton Denny one.

I can't find the thing these go in - I got mine from Boots - but these Ever Ready Corn & Callous Knife Replacement Blades www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0045ZU5ZQ/ref=cm_sw_r_apa_trMnBb46MT6FA?tag=mumsnetforum-21

And Dermatonics foot balm. Bought on recommendation from here. It is much better than Flexitol.

Foot specialist here, anything that you can buy over the counter will not work. Proper debridement by a foot health professional will remove the hard skin and you can then apply a urea based cream regularly after that. Using footner/pumice/foot rasps will generate hard skin, because it is made by friction, so all you are doing is making the problem worse! A foot health specialist will also give you good advice going further, and no a pedicure won't cut it, it will just do the same as all the other products which is eventually make the problem worse with friction.

People spend money on all of these over the counter products, when actually a few visits a year to someone who will do the job properly will actually resolve the problem.

madbengalmum how annoying! I got all my hard skin treated by a local chiropodist recently and when I asked her how to keep on top of it she said to use a pumice stone. Is that incorrect advice then? I’ve just been and bought one too funnily enough.

Im going back to my doctor monday as i have plantar kerasomething due to another condition and my feet are awful. I went on a trail round dermatologists last time and im now wondering if it was a chiropodist i should have seen! No skin was removed for me. I peel the scales after lots of flexitol.

Flexitol stopped working for me a few months ago (I wonder if they changed the formulation?) so I've started using Dermatonics Once (bought from Amazon) which is fantastic - working like flexitol used to, and only applied once a day - means I can slather it on at night and not in the morning - always found with flexitol that it acted like a magnet for all kinds of dirt all day even if I rubbed it in really well.

KTD, we don't advise pumice if you have a build up, pumice isn't imho the best thing to use, because the best thing you can do after debridement, ie scalpel removal of hard skin is to moisturise, lots. The people that have no callous moisturise only with me debriding. Callous is only a dry skin build up.

Sacred, I would advise some foot specialist help, the doctor will give you cream, but like with most conditions you need to rid the foot of the condition before applying cream.

I have had seriously cracked heels/feet for months and months and Flexitol relieved some of the symptoms but didn't cure it. Then I read that it might be caused by a fungal infection, so I got some Daktarin cream which I slap on morning and night, and it's almost cleared up entirely. I had very dry skin that was prone to thicken and crack and it was so painful. Filing and removing the hard skin helped a little but in the long run made it much worse.

The other thing I'm doing is soaking my feet for twenty minutes every night in warm water with a few drops of tea tree oil in it, and then moisturising my feet with almond oil, just to speed up the process and get any of the nooks and crannies I've missed with the cream. The tea tree oil is very effective and the almond oil has a nicely soothing effect.

Ming, to resolve the cracked heel the skin needs to be debrided, removed and taken back as far as possible then treated, fissures are easily dealt with, but you won't get there yourself unfortunately.

Mad, the fissures have healed and the skin is new soft skin apart from one small patch of dry skin on each heel. As I said, debriding was painful and ultimately useless.

It might not work for everyone but some people may find it's worth trying such an easy and cheap at-home remedy before seeking professional help.

If you had the skin debrided, ie surgically removed and it was useless then the foot specialist didnt do their job properly because that is just part of the process, you would then need specific treatment to pull the fissure together etc. Then appropriate after care should have been suggested, which wouldn't involve soaking/macerating your feet.

Mad - the condition wont go away as its genetic - but it seems to have got worse/spread. It definitley needs help.

I did go to a chiropodist once who refused to treat it until it had been seen. Dermatologist refered me to consultant in london who got v excited about genetic testing etc.. .. but didnt help my feet!!!

Aah, not keratolysis then, must be plantar keratosis. A foot specialist would certainly have more of clue of what to do than a doctor. Now you know exactly what it is, you may find it useful to speak with a footie who has much experience with management of it, because if not managed it can have a real impact on gait.

Thats interesting. Ive had some muscle problems when walking....

So ask dr to refer to chiropodist not dermatologist then...

The only thing that worked for me was a medical pedicure by a qualified chiropodist.

I would bypass the doctor and book in to see someone who does biomechanics either a podiatrist or foot health professional if it is affecting your walking.

Fogcutter, Yup, a medical pedicure by a foot health professional or chiropodist is a good way to go and a good regime to do this every few months.

Mad podiatrist wouldnt see me when i first saw one as feet needed more help. I feel
Im going in circles. Will see if i can see the one at the practice

Probably as you needed a precise diagnosis, i would try a different one, good luck.

Someone else already said this but I have found that since changing from shower gel to bar soap, my horrible dry scaly shins are perfectly fine, and my dry feet are improving massively.

I've been using a cheese-grater type file on my heels before going in the shower. I'm sure I read somewhere that it was more effective doing this when the skin's dry than after when it's wet.

Now I don't know what the heck I should do. Cheese grater* and Flexitol seemed to keep the hard skin under control, but have I just been kidding myself that it's working and should really book a foot specialist appointment?

*I really ought to stop calling it that