Find the right cover
Pick your situation to see which cover or line protector fits, and a step-by-step guide for showering with it. HydroSeal covers are for showering only. Never submerge a line, port, cast or incision.
"I have a PICC line and I don't know how to shower or sleep without wrecking it."
A PICC dressing has to stay dry for the life of the line, and the tubing catches on everything. Cover the arm for showers, and hold the line flat the rest of the day.
"They said it isn't a PICC, but I still have to keep it dry."
A midline sits in the same upper-arm veins as a PICC, so the shower routine is the same: cover the dressing and the tubing, keep the arm out of the spray, never submerge it.
"My port is accessed for a few days every cycle. How do I wash?"
While a needle and dressing are in the port, keep the whole site dry under a sealed barrier. Between cycles, a healed, de-accessed port usually needs no cover.
"I have tubes coming out of my chest and I haven't had a real shower in weeks."
Tunneled central lines and dialysis catheters have an exit site, a dressing and hanging lumens. A large barrier covers all three, so many patients can shower again once their team agrees.
"The IV in my hand keeps getting wet, or pulled."
A short peripheral IV needs a small sealed cover for washing, and something softer than tape to stop it catching between uses.
"Six weeks of IV antibiotics at home. How do I live normally?"
Home infusion means a line you look after yourself, every day, for weeks. A simple shower routine and a way to keep the line from snagging make it manageable.
"My surgeon said keep it dry. I still need to shower."
Chest, abdominal, back and hip incisions are often covered with a dressing that has to stay dry for days. A barrier sized past the dressing lets you shower without soaking it.
"A plastic bag and a rubber band leaked again."
A wet cast or hand dressing can mean skin problems and a trip back to the clinic. A full-arm cover with a strap seals above it where bags leak.
"I can't get my leg wet and I'm scared of falling in the shower."
Keep the leg dry with a full-leg cover, and keep yourself upright with a shower chair, a grab bar and a handheld shower head.
"The skin around my dressing is itchy, red and raw from tape."
Weeks of adhesive take a toll. Less tape and fewer adhesive layers help: netting to hold the line, and a strap-on cover that does not stick to the skin.
"How do I shower my child without getting the line wet?"
Kids wriggle, splash and pick. A cover that fits a small arm, a quick shower with a handheld head, and netting that keeps little fingers off the line make it workable. Never let them sit in a bath with a line.
No. HydroSeal covers are for showering only. A line, port, cast or fresh incision should never be submerged: no baths, hot tubs, pools, lakes or the ocean.
No. Covers go over your intact sterile dressing to keep water off it. Never remove a dressing to put on a cover.
Adhesive barriers (HydroSeal, HydroSeal Flex) are small and seal right around the dressing. The Sleeve and Boot cover the whole arm or leg and fasten with a strap, so nothing sticks to your skin. Both work; many people choose by how sensitive their skin is.
Yes, ask before your first shower and whenever something about your line, dressing or incision changes. Rules vary between hospitals and procedures.
ProNet is soft tubular netting that holds a line and dressing in place day to day, instead of tape. Take it off to shower and use a HydroSeal cover.
Hospitals, infusion centers, home-health agencies and distributors can get case pricing, samples and purchase orders.
Request bulk pricing ›This page is general information, not medical advice. Always follow the instructions from your doctor, nurse or infusion team, and contact them if a dressing gets wet or loosens, or the site looks red, swollen or painful.
HydroSeal Boot