XEROSOX at depth ?

[Wb10005]

Guys - I need a watertight seal over an old skingraft for a liveaboard trip to Oz. Do you think that those Xerosox (www.XEROSOX.com) will work at depth ? Know anyone that has tried them? Allegedly, they have a watertight seal and a pressure system/pump.

I need to keep the foot/heel bone dry, and don't feel like doof-azz diving in a drysuit in the coral sea in summertime. It will have to go directly over my bare leg, so I was wondering about the squeeze and if it has been tested at depth.

Other than XEROSOX or a light dry suit, any other ideas ???????

Any ideas ?

Bill

 

[Benthos]

Greetings Bill.

Old graft opens up? If the injury has healed then new epithelial cells should have been regenerated from the underlying follicles or basal lamina around the periphery of the injury. Once healed it may scar but the tissue should not be very unstable. If it is then it likely has not healed. Grafts in areas like the heel may be stubborn healers due to poor circulation, high moisture/bacterial load and most of all mechanical stress. Have you talked to your doctor about how to encourage it to heal completely before returning to normal use? Fins are especially hard on this area. I just want to try and figure out the cause of your problem rather than explain how to circumvent a symptom.

Just like in a drysuit boot you can expect a great deal of perspiration to build up in the xerosock. It can be dried easily and wearing a wicking sock (like a ski sock) underneath combined with antiperspirant may help. It works on the same principal as a latex drysuit seal (except you vacuum all the air out of it) and can be expected to leak as such. While the adds show a scuba diver wearing one they where not designed for this. They were made for bathing but people have used them for swimming with good results. You could stack the odds in your favor by shaving your leg and hoping that kicking with fins does not break the seal but your hoping for allot. I don’t know if or how long you could get away with it. Any vapor barier creates internal conditions perfect for bacterial growth and should not be seen as a barrier to infection either. You may want to think about a broad spectrum antibiotic if you are traveling.

I think you might want to talk to your doctor about your recovery. I havn’t the slightest idea what your story is but perhaps now is not the best time for you to be diving.

 

[Wb10005]

RT -

The graft is from an old motorcycle accident in 1993. The ball of the heel was grafted, and is healed completely. I can walk/run/do squats etc, like normal. However, after bouts in a hot tub,or long bouts of swimming/diving, the tissue becomes very soft and cracks/bleeds a tiny bit.

This only happens after exposure to H2o for long periods of time. Since I am only going to be in the Coral Sea once in my lifetime, I am looking for maximum dryness in the area.

I am concerned -- but I am still going.

Any more info would be helpful.