Product reviews

For the sake of any help it may offer to others, I am going to put some of the results of my testing of products here. I did a lot of testing when I was between stoma nurses as my supply temporarily dried up - so I rang up the manufacturers and asked for samples which I relied on for a couple of months. I'm glad I did as I now know that I am using the best product for my lifestyle.

My ileostomy formation was my 17th operation (since birth) and because of that, I have quite a bit of scarring and disfigurement. I mention this because the one thing I am not going to include in my reviews is whether or not they leak around the stoma. In my case, they pretty much all did to start but I couldn't blame the products for this. Seals or rings helped me whilst my stoma was changing. You may not need these, or you may prefer paste. None of us are the same when it comes to fitting.

As I have a tiny 17mm stoma, not quite round, none of the pre-cut bags are any use to me as they start at a 25mm hole. I began by cutting my own bags from a starter hole and it's on this basis that the following is written. All of the following bags have a 13mm starter hole.  

I'll be reviewing some seals too, but firstly, here are some bags and pouches. The numbers in brackets are the product numbers, which you need to quote if you want to order the product.

One Piece Systems

Coloplast Sensura Mio (“Midi” size 10411)

These are attractive bags, with a light grey, woven covering which feels nice next to the skin. They are a squarish oval in shape and are symmetrical. They are the ONLY bags which are so completely opaque that a bag cover is never going to be necessary.

They have an ultra-stretch skin barrier, which has excellent performance in the shower. The woven bag covering also resists water well and so the whole bag is barely effected by showering. These bags would be good choice for people who enjoy swimming.

In my view, Coloplast have the bottom opening issue all sewn up! No other bag has the system Coloplast have and I prefer it to all others. Instead of having a plastic strip glued to each side, there is a full plastic end with an extended part on the back, which folds over into a recess on the front. This means that there are no flappy bits of plastic at the end which get fouled, and cleaning the opening is very easy indeed. All Coloplast pouches have this system.

The opening part of the bag folds into the cover with a small spot of velcro. It can also be folded half-way up the bag as there is an additional spot of velcro just underneath the flap of the viewing window. This is handy for showering, or perhaps for intimate moments. It does however limit the effectiveness of the viewing window, and in a one-piece bag, I consider a viewing window to be essential in order to help me position the bag when I fit it.

Unfortunately, having grown to love these bags during my testing, I later found I couldn't wear them!  Drat and double drat!  After many tests of these bags, it became obvious that I had an allergy. I was gutted, because they were my favourite bags!  But I couldn't get past it. I had to accept that they weren't for me, and I sent the unopened boxes I had to The Jacobs Well appeal in East Yorkshire, who distribute unwanted stomacare items to persons in need in other countries. I should add that I'd first tried donating them to a local hospital but they couldn't accept them (even unopened) due to tight infection control measures. 

Salts Confidence (NDA13 for the Midi size, NDAS13 is smaller and NDAL13 is larger)

These, along with all other bags, have a flesh-coloured lightly felted fabric covering which is not completely opaque. “Shadows” of output can be seen, which for some people, may be an advantage. The felted fabric feels softer on the skin than the woven fabric of the Sensura Mio and some people may not like the Sensura Mio because of this.

The Midi Salts bags are not symmetrical, they have a shape which is designed to complement the body. This bag is therefore ideal for ileostomates whose stoma is on the right side, but if your stoma is on the left they will not suit you so well. The off-centre shape puts the opening nearer to your middle and the build-up of output also tends to lie nearer the middle where it may be less obtrusive. There is a fully effective viewing window.

The sample bags I tried were of the “midi” size and they were on the large side. For me as a small person, this put the bottom opening and its bulkiness a little to close to my personal area where it was slightly uncomfortable. So I ordered some of the smaller sized bags and though only a little smaller than the "midi" Sensura Mio, they were more comfortable than the "midi" Salts bags. 

The skin barrier of the Salts bags fits superbly. It looks inflexible but it moulds well when warmed, in addition to which it has five well-placed slits which conform brilliantly to my rather disfigured body. These bags are the only truly one-piece bags with which I did not necessarily need to wear a seal. Unfortunately, this wonderful skin barrier is not brilliant in the shower. The adhesive seeps out from under the barrier and to some extent, washes away. When it eventually dries, it regains its integrity, but I wouldn't feel confident swimming in these bags.

The bottom opening of the bag has a strip of foamed plastic at each side, and there is a helpful pull-tag on the front. This helped to open the bag whilst keeping the hands away from the output. But when I ordered the smaller version I inadvertantly ordered an older version (NDS13 instead of NDAS13) and this pull-tag was missing. There were other shortfalls too, and I would recommend you take care over this.

Hollister Conform 2 (58300)

These bags are oval and symmetrical and have the flesh-coloured felted covering which is usual to all bags except the Sensura Mio. My particular samples were huge (“Maxi” size), so huge that I had to double them over at the bottom to prevent them from scratching and itching my personal area. I cannot find any smaller sizes but if I could, I doubt I would trial them anyway. 

The reason for this is the lack of a viewing window. This makes for a smooth bag but I feel that I need a viewing window to enable me to position the bag properly when I am fitting it.

The skin barrier however was excellent. It had a flexible inner ring, with a fabric support area outside of this. It was a large area but very flexible and very comfortable against the skin. It coped well in the shower, it's edges not lifting at all. Like all felt covered bags however, the bag itself got very wet and took some time to dry.

The bottom opening on this bag, and the two-piece bag I tried later, is of the two strips of plastic variety with its extruding plastic flaps, but it was relatively easy to open and a bit of pre-bending before use helped with this.

Convatec Esteem Mouldable (413521)

These bags are somewhere between a one-piece and a two-piece system, and the “mouldable part” was what later led me to try seals as an answer to the leakage problem I had. Essentially the product is a bag with a large hole which comes with its own dedicated mouldable seal. The seal part is very like other types of seals which are available as accessories.

The bags are felt-covered, and oval, with a pocket at the bottom into which the bottom opening can be turned “inside out”. They are on the large side for me, with the usual slight problem of it hanging too low, and they are presently only available in one size.

They are comfortable to wear and there is no need to wear a seal as the bags come complete with their own seal. (Nb now that my stoma has shrunk to 17mm, I can no longer wear these bags which start at 25mm). There is therefore no risk of leakage around the stoma and the bags are completely reliable, provided great care is taken when applying the pouch part to the seal part (as stated above, the hole is rather large). 

But they do leak in another way. The filters on the bags are terrible, not only does gas escape but so too does output. The little filter covers which come with the bag don't stop this, neither do three strips of sellotape, as the output works its way around both. The only thing which works is to completely cover the filter in glue and to forget about any hope of gas escaping. I did this to every Convatec bag I used, I just couldn't cope with the risk of stained clothing!

The seal and ring barrier system copes well with water and can withstand a shower, but it starts to lose integrity in a bath. This is another bag I would not trust in a swimming pool.

The bottom opening is the worst of all bags I tried, unfortunately. The two plastic strips as often as not bend the same way when you squeeze them and pre-bending them does not seem to help. The plastic flaps at the end tend to fold back against the opening, trapping output, in too great a quantity to ignore. As a consequence, I end up opening the bag with my fingers and getting output all over my hands.

Convatec are aware of this, I believe that many people have complained and they plan to change the opening system. Good on them, for listening to customer comments.

Two Piece Systems

Dansak Two piece 1736-10 and 1315-36

Dansak 2 piece and 1 piece

It took me a while to try some Dansak samples, as my initial sample bags were so small that they were impractical. But I eventually got hold of some larger 2-piece ones (slightly bigger than the picture above) and I liked them a lot. Dansak are owned by Hollister and there are things in common, but the Dansak bags felt more modern, with the soft, felted outer and a much larger opening - the largest opening of any pouch I tried. The flanges of my samples were tiny - with a 36mm coupling and a diameter of only 85 x 72 mm. These had the advantage of not overlapping my scars at all and I didn't need to use a ring with them. However, if I was going to order some, I would go for the slightly larger 43 mm coupled flange:
1743-10 (diameter 105 x 89 mm)
1315-43 corresponding pouches

Salts Harmony Duo (HDD1332, smaller size is HDDS1332)

Flex-fit flange (FHD1332)

(This product does not have a click-on version)

I was looking forward to trying this system, because I had liked the skin barrier of the one-piece system so much. This skin barrier was just as good and it didn't require a seal, its five slits conforming to my body shape well.

The skin barrier has a “notch” at the bottom and there is a corresponding gap in the bag to fit into it. This means unfortunately that you need to line up the separate skin barrier with your intended final position prior to attaching the bag, which isn't easy. It's easy before you remove the backing tape because you can slide it around, but you can't slide around an adhesive surface. I would imagine that practice would help.

Like the one-piece, the bag was shaped to fit body contours and it was a little on the large size for me. But like the smaller one-piece described above, my sample seemed to be of the older design. Again, take care - the newer version is an improvement. 

Coloplast Sensura Mio (“Midi” size 11962)

Sensura Mio Flex baseplate (10561)

The two-piece Sensura Mio comes in two versions, an adhesive bond version (“stick-on”) and a mechanical clip on version (“click-on”). In all other respects, the bag was the same as the one-piece and every bit as good. The shortcoming of the viewing window on the one-piece bag doesn't matter either, as a separate skin barrier allows for plenty of visibility whilst it is being fitted.

The stick-on skin barrier had a floating surface for the attachment of the bag. In other words, the part which attached to the skin was connected to the part which attached to the bag only at the centre, so it was possible to really firm-up the body attachment around its circumference. Theoretically the bag can be peeled off the skin barrier and substituted with a fresh bag, although I didn't do this.

The skin barrier had all the same properties of the one-piece version, being good in the shower, and for me, just as itchy... The bag was almost identical to the one-piece, shedding water and having a superb bottom opening. I wanted to adopt this system as my standard system thinking it would cope with anything I could throw at it. But I had to abandon that idea when I discovered I was allergic to the skin barrier, see above.

Coloplast Sensura Mio (“Midi” size 11242)

Sensura Mio click baseplate (10512)

My trial of this product didn't go too well. I applied the skin barrier, perfectly and securely, and then tried to clip on the bag. But I couldn't clip it on! I grabbed another skin barrier and tried it away from my body, but it took a bit of force. The same amount of force simply wasn't possible against my body because my body was too cushioned to allow that amount of pressing. So this product just isn't for me!

It has a good clip-on system however, for those who can use it. There is a wavy band around the collar on the bag and a clip which tightens it. This means that once the bag is on, it won't come off. You need to unclip this band to separate the bag from the skin barrier, and there's a coloured button so that you can do this easily.

Coloplast must have a lot of confidence in that clip because they put the belt hooks on the baseplate instead of the pouch. And if you want to use a belt then on the Sensura Mio, you need the dedicated belt which is made especially for it.

Coloplast Sensura, (“Midi” size 14885)
Sensura Click Baseplate, (10021) 50 mm coupling

Pictured with 40mm coupling and supplier cut 17mm hole

Having found myself allergic to the Sensura Mio, I ordered a sample of the standard two-piece Sensura, and I now find myself hoping that it's never discontinued as it's an older system. It has the same great bottom opening, it's the perfect size, and for reasons I can't explain, the clip-on mechanism works better for me. The bag is beige, like all the other bags, and has a soft and comfortable covering. It survives both shower and swimming pool and is robust enough to survive four days' wear (that's the most I've tried, because cycling tends to make me need to change). And it's robustness makes it sit well on my rather small body, so it's very comfortable and doesn't chafe. This is the bag I now use, but when I run through supplies I am going to change slightly so that I have a smaller coupling. 
40 mm coupling baseplate: 10011
40 mm associated pouch: 14884

Hollister Conform 2 (“Midi” 24750)

Flex-wear skin barrier with click-on border (34500)

Given that I'd been unable to try the Sensura Mio click-on system, this was the first alternative clip-on set which I was able to try. I ordered a lot of these before I came to prefer the Sensura system above, so I am gradually phasing them out.

The "Midi" bag was “P” shaped with the bottom opening positioned to one side, very unlike the one-piece version which was a “Maxi” size. Like the Salts bags, this means that the system would suit people with stomas on the right side of the body but not on the left. The bottom opening lay almost centrally on my (small) body and in a horizontal alignment. I tried it on with cycle shorts and found it sat behind the pad of the shorts, so that it was invisible and also comfortable. Also, like the Salts bag, the output tended to gather there, in the middle where it was less obtrusive. A good bag for cycling then - except it wasn't. Because the bottom opening has no soft covering, I found it chafed and in fact took the skin off my sensitive area. To combat this, I had to fold the bottom upwards and hold it in place with sellotape! 

Like on the one-piece, the skin barrier has a flexible inner band and a fabric band outside of this, which was equally adhesive. The skin barrier was easy to apply and utterly comfortable, easily the most comfortable that I tried. These skin barriers/flanges are in my opinion the most comfortable by a mile. I tried them with and without a seal and though they leaked only slightly without, I decided that if a skin barrier as comfortable as this one needed a seal, then in my case at least, all skin barriers need a seal.

Why is it that I like the skin barriers of some bags and the pouches of other, different systems? Why no compatability? 

Maybe this is commerce but it doesn't explain the Hollister/Dansak incompatability!

• Hollister skin barriers are the best, in my view
• I like the Dansak pouches better than the Hollister pouches
• They are the same company, but:
• Hollister coupling sizes: 45 mm, 55 mm, 65 mm
• Dansak coupling sizes: 36 mm, 43 mm, 55 mm

Maybe the 55 mm products would work together but that's far too big a coupling for me to use. Doh!

Anyway, the Hollister skin barrier survives the shower well, and is easily dried with a hairdryer. I later tested it in the bath and it held utterly secure and was utterly reliable. I learned however that you need to exclude every bit of wind before submerging a bag - why didn't I guess that? Gas floats!

The bottom opening itself was exactly like the one-piece, and as I said above, it helped if I pre-bent it before use. I found that after the second day it got a bit 'tired' but most people manage to wear these bags for three or four days without problems, and as a two-piece, there is always the option of changing the bag but not the baseplate. And sellotaping the bottom over for a bike ride didn't do it much good, so changing the bag after a ride is a good idea anyway.

Conclusions: bags/pouches

• I like the two-piece systems, because they are so easy to fit accurately around my tiny stoma.

• I liked the Coloplast Sensura Mio range, though they didn't like me, but fortunately I also liked the Coloplast Sensura range and they suit me better.

• I use Coloplast Sensura two piece system exclusively. 

Seals, rings and washers – various names for the same thing

I won't bother with photographs of these (apart from the rather unusual Dansak one), they all look like symmetrical flesh coloured disks with a hole in the middle. In all of the ones I have tried the hole measures about 18mm which now that Arwel has downsized, is a perfect fit for me. I just squish it a bit as they don't need to fit precisely - you can stretch the ring and fit it perfectly to your particular stoma. How easily you can do this depends on the ring, and I have tested this function plenty of times, my stoma having changed size constantly since coming into existence!


Salts Secuplast SMSS/SMST

I tried two different types of ring, the ones with Aloe and the ones without, and there are two different thicknesses to the non-Aloe type (SMSS is standard, and SMST is thin). I found both the standard and the thin rings broke up in my fingers when I tried to stretch them. I tried on every sample I had but there were others I liked better and I didn't want to be messing around with hard-to-use rings when there were others I liked more. 

I must mention the Aloe rings though. These had a 25mm hole and so I had to cut out a segment, but once I'd done this they fitted much better than the normal rings and were utterly comfortable. But again, why use a hard-to-use product?

Dansac (45mm diameter, 3mm thickness)


I tried two sizes of these rings and they worked well enough, but like the Dansac bags they were of varying diameter. By this I mean that the hole was not central, it was to the top, and so the ring was very narrow there. Not for me.



Convatec 413504 (48mm diameter, 4mm thick)


These were thick and sturdy rings which were very easy to handle and which went on like a dream. They stretched in a controllable manner and held their shape. The trouble with them was that they were so thick that when they absorbed moisture, they swelled so much that they threatened the performance of the opening in my stoma. So they were great for one day, but there was a bit of seepage on day two. I am waiting for some samples of a thinner version, and I should imagine I will like these a lot. My only gripe is that the packaging isn't robust enough to survive compression in my handbag!

Colorplast Brava 12042/12030 (48mm diameter, 4.2mm and 2mm thicknesses).


The samples I received were of the thick variety (4.2mm) and though they worked well, eliminating any chance of a leak, they had the same problem as the Convatec ones. Worse still, I couldn't get them off!  Despite this I ordered a pack of the thin ones (2mm) and used the whole pack. They worked well, never leaked, but were so thin that I had to be careful not to push my fingers through them when I was pressing my flange into place. They were also fiddly to handle because they had no rigidity, and they were too easy to stretch the hole to too big a size. Despite having some wastage due to this I liked them, but not as much as I liked the Hollister ones, below.

Hollister Adapt Barrier Rings 7805 (48mm, 3.5mm)


Perfect! Easy to use, the right thickness, the right sized hole (almost), straightforward to mould to shape and straightforward to remove. Even better, each ring comes in a small plastic rigid case which is uncrushable, so these rings survive in my handbag, whereas others don't. 

The Hollister rings are my choice rings.

Clinimed with Manuka MHWA (50mm, 2.5mm or 4mm thick)


My sample included 2.5mm, 4mm and 4mm large rings. I tried both thicknesses of the 50mm diameter rings. 

I can't blame the Manuka honey - I don't see how anyone can be allergic to sugar and water. But these rings itched like crazy and I just couldn't stand them for more than an hour. I tried four times and that was enough. 

They may be great for you, but they didn't agree with me.

Siltac Silicone Ostomy Seals TR1020 (48mm, 2.5mm)


I have a sample selection of these, which are fundamentally different to every other ring in that they are made of silicone. They seem to be supplied in the mould they are made, because they have to be peeled off it. But however much you deform them they go back into shape. They don't absorb moisture, so they won't swell. As far as I know, no-one is allergic to silicone. 

But I cannot try them as my stoma is too small. These rings are designed to be stretched around the stoma and then allowed to shrink to fit perfectly - they don't hold their shape when you stretch them. But the smallest size has a 25mm hole. You can't cut out a segment, as they do not seal back together at the join. So I'm sure they are a wonderful product, but no good for me. 

Conclusions: Rings

• Not surprisingly, I use the Hollister Adapt Barrier rings exclusively. 

• I liked others, but I see no need to vary rings, though I can easily see reasons to use more than one type of pouch.