Custom glove brands, microfine glove"

KS1 · March 2010

Sorry to bug folks again, but I am going to my fitter on Tuesday to try, yet again, to get a glove that works. My fitter (who seems very good) had a custom jobst elvarex class 1 last time but after a few wears, the thumb stub shrunk a lot, and my thumb swelled..

When I see my fitter, it would be great to have a list of all of the manufacturers who make customs so she can consider them. Here's what I have seen in the posts:

Jobst elvarex custom flat knit

mediven 550 custom flat knit

juzo circular knit (is this a custom?)

juzo flat knit

gottfried ??

Are there any other customs out there that folks have used or know about?

I came across the following link about a "microfine" glove that appears to be an "off the shelf" glove,but the fingers can be cut to the appropriate length. Has anyone used it?

http://www.journaloflymphoedema.com/journal/0202_glove.pdf

In addition to LE, I have neuropathy and vascular insufficiency (also due to BC treatment), so fitting is tough and I'll be paying for this one out-of-pocket.

- KS1

Binney4 · March 2010

Hi, KS1,

Here's a page with links to various brands of garments. Most offer both off-the-shelf and custom. Gottfried and Bio-Concepts are only custom; LympheDivas is only off-the-shelf and has only gauntlets, not gloves:

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/Lymphedema_garments.htm

The only microfine gloves I know about are by Farrowwrap. Maybe they now make them custom, but I'm only aware of their off-the-shelf. While I love the feel of them and use mine fairly regularly, the fingers are not very long to begin with, so cutting them "to fit" has never made much sense to me. But they are comfortable, and they can be used on either hand. They're here:

http://www.lymphedemaproducts.com/products/farrowwrap-microfine-glove.html

If you're paying out of pocket, ask for prices -- some are considerably cheaper than others.

Others will be along with more ideas, I'm sure. Keep us posted!
Binney

otter · March 2010

I really like my FarrowWrap glove. It's soft and smooth, it feels good, and it looks nice compared to other compression gloves. But, as Binney said, the fingers are just too short. I have fairly long hands and long fingers; and the fingers of the FarrowWrap glove don't even go out as far as my last knuckle. The glove would be more comfortable, and probably more effective, if the fingers went out to the base of my nails. One of the big selling points of the glove is the ability to cut the fingers to fit, so I don't know why they didn't make the fingers long enough to start with.

otter

KS1 · March 2010

Hi all,

I wanted to report the result of my trip to the fitter. I went with a printout of all of the brands of gloves (from the step-up site - thanks Binney4!). My wonderful fitter carefully and thoughtfully went through each option, showed me samples of the material etc.. Because of the vascular component of my neuropathy, throughout the day, my fingers will suddenly turn dusky purple with no instigating event. It happened while I was seeing my fitter, and she was concerned. After much deliberation, she decided on a closed finger custom glove that is latex free. (I thought it was a medi, but now I am having doubts.) Because my hand sometimes looks worse when I have been wearing compression, she suggested I try wearing my off-the-shelf Juzo sleeve without a glove. (It is quite loose at the wrist and I wear a piece of Komprex in the place where I swell.) After an hour, my hand and finger measurements hadn't changed a bit so I am cautiously experimenting going gloveless or just wearing an arthritis glove. Who knows -- maybe this is part of the solution

-- KS1

PS If anyone in the metro NYC area needs a good fitter, I would highly recommend mine. She and the lymphedema therapist work together closely

Binney4 · March 2010

KS, that's all good news! Smile Do keep us posted. Lymphedema feels like one grand experiment after another, doesn't it?! Tongue out

Hugs,
Binney

bcreighton · April 2010

Ladies, I am responsible for Microfine glove sales here in the states.

With regards to the length of the fingers on the microfine gloves, the fingers were left a little short because it was felt that the finished edges would be preferable to cut edges on the fingers, as it looks a little nicer.

From this thread, it would appear that you would prefer to have longer fingers that were trimmed shorter? So which would you prefer, longer fingers that are trimmed to length, or shorter fingers that are finished?

Thanks,

Barry for Farrow Medical

KS1 · April 2010

I definitely vote for longer fingers, as long as the material doesn't completely fray.

KS1

Binney4 · April 2010

Definitely longer. And thank you so much for listening!
Binney

KS1 · April 2010

My experiment wearing a sleeve but not a glove (or just an arthritis glove) didn't work. My hand looked just fine, but after a couple of hours my forearm ached where I swell. Why my forearm should start hurting, is beyond me. But, I did it for a few days and had the same experience each day.

I have been wearing my new closed fingertip Medi glove for about a week. I know that many of us have had difficulty getting gloves that work, so I figured I would give a report

Tech specifications: Mediven Mondi esprit, class 1. CLOSED fingertips,

I like the material better than the custom jobst. It is a fair deal softer than a custom jobst (either class 1 or 2), though not as soft as a medi 95 off-the-shelf gloves or my juzo custom and off-the-shelf sleeves. Unlike the jobst elvarex glove which left my skin feeling and looking like I had done dishes for hours, my skin looks normal when I take off the mediven mondi. The mediven mondi espirit is latex free (86% polyamid, 14% elastan) and my fitter thinks it was the latex in the jobst that was bothering me, but I have never had a problem with latex in the past, so who knows.

I like the appearance of the Mediven mondi espirit material better than the jobst elvarex. It doesn't pill as much as my jobst elvarex, and it it washes very well (blood and strawberry juice didn't leave stains) .

Although subjectively, they seem to have about the same compression, oddly, my elvarex is much smaller than my hand when it is off, whereas the mediven mondi looks about the same size of my hand. So far, the mediven mondi fingers haven't shrink in length the way the elvarex did. The mediven mondi espirit seems to fit better than the elvarex, even though the same fitter fit both.

All in all, I like the mediven better than the jobst elvarex, but there are 2 downsides

1) it took over a month for the mediven to arrive, whereas the custom jobs take about 10 days

2) there doesn't seem to be much compression for the last 2.5 inches at the wrist, so I have to have the sleeve and the glove overlap a lot.

3) it takes longer for the mediven mondi to dry than the medi 95 off-the-shelf or jobst custome

With respect to having a closed finger tip glove, I can't use a trackpad or iPod and buttoning things is tough, but hey, it beats having purple painful fingertips. - KS1

otter · April 2010

This is in response to Barry (bcreighton), who asked if we would rather have longer fingers on the Farrow Microfine gloves, even if that means they need to be trimmed (and, therefore, wouldn't have a finished edge).

My response would be "yes". I'd rather sacrifice aesthetics in favor of therapeutic effectiveness. I'm not a seamstress, but I think I could wrap the cut edges of the fingers well enough with a needle and thread to clean them up if necessary. I'm assuming from the advertisements that the cut edges would not unravel or fray, even if they look a bit untidy.

otter

OneBadBoob · April 2010

My response is with Otter and Binney--definitely longer fingers and thumb!

I just adore my microfine gloves AND WOULD LOVE TO HAVE THEM IN BLACK!!!

Also, Barry, my fitter is having a hard time with your company in getting samples in each of the sizes. This is really important so we ladies can try them on and get the best fit before we purchase them.

Please PM me for more information on that problem.

bcreighton · April 2010

OK, I'll see what I can do.

Thank you for taking time to provide us with feedback.

Barry with Farrow Medical

Sher · July 2010

Does the Microfine glove seem to run larger than other gloves? I just tried a Medi 95 glove and the size III fit perfectly in the fingers, but was a little too tight across my palm and above wrist. Next size up in Medi 95 is way too loose, so am now thinking of trying a Microfine while waiting another month for my custom Juzo to arrive - getting to the desperate point here! So, the Microfine chart indicates I would wear a small and just wanted to check with others if the glove does tend to run large.

Thanks!

KS1 · July 2010

Hi all -- As I mentioned in another thread, my thumb & index finger are swelling more. It will be 6-7 weeks before I see a LE therapist, and she said I shouldn't order a custom glove until the hand is under control. So, it could be 2+ months before a new custom arrives. So, like, Sher, I am looking for an off-the-shelf glove to tide me over. One plan is to order several different gloves, and then choose the one that fits the best. I'd like to compare all of the gloves at the same time.

Do any of the on-line suppliers have a generous-enough return policy that I could order several gloves at the same time, and return all but one? I would just be trying on the gloves, not wearing them. Thanks - KS1

PS After 3 months of machine washing (but hand drying), my custom Mediven Mondi, class 1 has minimal pilling and no staining (pen, grape juice, oil, blood etc. come off). I've had some skin issues in my finger tips. However, I think this is due to the combo of closed fingertips and heat/humidity.

Binney4 · July 2010

Sher, my Farrow microfine glove fits with the size that was indicated in their measurement instructions (also small). It's a very comfortable glove, but the fingers are short (were you reading the board when their company guy came and asked us if we wanted the fingers longer, and we all said yes? But that wasn't very long ago so I doubt they've made the switch yet -- you could ask if you're interested). Really nice glove.

Let us know what you discover,
Binney

Sher · July 2010

Thanks Binney, I seem to remember trying on a medium that my therapist had and that it felt like nothing more than a regular glove......no compression, but I also don't think my hands are that small, so I might be in between sizes for that one too! I will check with Farrow first to see if anything has been done with the finger length, thanks for reminding me. And they make the Farrow wrap in black, but not the gloves which I think are an odd color - kind of orangy (how's that for a word), or at least the one I saw was like that.

I have a KT Darted glove and a KT Pocket glove, both in large. Since my hand and fingers are now smaller and both these gloves are a little loose, maybe I'd better just order one of these in a smaller size. Cheaper too!

What kind of sleeve goes with a KT or Microfine glove?

kira66715 · July 2010

Karin, I had posted for Sher, the companies that have liberal return policies. Let me see if I can find the thread and bump it

Brightlifedirect is good:

http://www.brightlifedirect.com/customer_easy_returns.php#30day

Kira

Here's the links to the companies with better return policies

I've also used brightlifedirect, and they are about 5$ more expensive, but have a better return policy than nulife--30 days, full return

http://www.brightlifedirect.com/LYMPHEDEMA-PRODUCTS-Gloves-and-Gauntlets/c133_135/p1960/Medi-95-Glove-20-30mmHg-w/Compressive-Fingers/product_info.html

Metromedical will accept returns as long as it looks undamaged

http://www.metromedicalonline.com/medi760.html

I ordered a sleeve from this company and they were great and take returns for 30 days

http://www.compressionstockings.com/medi-95-2030-mmhg-compression-glove-with-finger-stubs-p-873.html

Sher · August 2010

Just curious if anyone has heard from Farrow Medical on gloves with longer fingers and also in black?

bcreighton · October 2010

Ladies,

I did not forget this thread. I am happy to report that we now carry Microfine gloves in both full finger and half finger versions. We have also added 2 new colors, for the half finger gloves, Black and Sand, which complement the Copper color we presently sell. The full finger glove presently only comes in Sand color; we are working to get the other 2 colors presently.

Thank you for providing us with feedback about your wants and needs. Also, please give our resellers a couple of weeks to catch up as the gloves just became available.

Barry with Farrow Medical

bcreighton · October 2010

Ladies,

I did not forget this thread. I am happy to report that we now carry Microfine gloves in both full finger and half finger versions. We have also added 2 new colors, for the half finger gloves, Black and Sand, which complement the Copper color we presently sell. The full finger glove presently only comes in Sand color; we are working to get the other 2 colors presently.

Thank you for providing us with feedback about your wants and needs. Also, please give our resellers a couple of weeks to catch up as the gloves just became available.

Barry with Farrow Medical

OneBadBoob · October 2010

Thanks Barry!

I almost broke Victor's arm at the NLN conference when I saw the black gloves, with longer fingers--I just wanted to steal it it was so wonderful!!

I have tried ordering it from several re-salers, and they say it will take a little more time.

Anxiously awaiting this wonderful product to be available for purchase!!

Binney4 · October 2010

Barry, thank you for listening to us and caring.
Binney

OneBadBoob · October 2010

Just bumping this up!

Ladies, these gloves are just beyond belief as far as comfort and being able to continue with your daily chores--

You feel so close to being bare naked on the hands!!

Sher · October 2010

I'd love to try these gloves, but what combination would work with them for a sleeve?

OneBadBoob · October 2010

Sher, both Juzo and Jobst make a black arm sleeve which would go very well with this glove.

Edited to say Lymphedivas also has an ebony arm sleeve that goes well with this glove.

annadou · October 2010

Hi Barry

What about the european market-who stocks your products-uk preferably.

Anna

Sher · October 2010

Thanks Jane! I was thinking though more about the materials of the different garments and how they would work together. I tried on a Microfine glove once (was a bit large) but it didn't seem to have much in the way of compression compared to my Juzo Helastic flat knit. My sleeve is a Juzo Dynamic and I guess I'm worrying that if my sleeve is heavier duty that the glove, it could make the swelling in my hand and fingers worse, if that makes sense.

I also have (and love) the KT darted glove and sometimes wear that by itself. I'm a cotton loving gal and really am quite comfy in the KT material which does the job without feeling oppressive. Maybe I should try it with my Juzo sleeve and see how it works, feels, etc. But it would be nice, I think, to have options for both KT and Microfine sleeves as well as gloves!

Estel · October 2010

with what do you all wash your garments?

SleeveNinja · October 2010

I just ordered a KT glove - it's cheaper than my Medi gaunlet and I'm hoping it's more comfortable too.

Good to know about the micro fiber glove. It looks so delicate, is it durable? BTW, has anyone tired the whole Farrow arm wrap?

sleeveninja

Sher · October 2010

Dawne-Hope, I use my regular laundry detergent (just a lesser amount since I don't really get the garments dirty) double rinse and delicate cycles for washer and dryer.

OneBadBoob · October 2010

I find them incredibley durable! and although they look light, they have great class I compression.

Another thing I love is that they do not "pill" like my Juzo gloves do!

Sher, is your arm sleeve Class I compression or Class II?

Custom glove brands, microfine glove"

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