Cheryl,
I definitely think you are on the right track when it comes to absorbency equating comfort. I find that if I wear a premium quality diaper, my skin doesn't feel as uncomfortable as it does when i wear my attends. I have worn Abena, ConfiDry, and A+ for hours on end with multiple wettings and my skin still feels dry. I couldn't do that with my attends, so I definitely think your're on the right track. . You mentioned he is small for his age, but you didn't mention his exact waist size. Abena does make both small and extra small, as does Tranquility. Is he smaller than a 20 inch waist? If so, your best bet would be this product here:
http://www.northshorecare.com/slimline1.html in the size Junior. As WedDad mentioned, Northshore care makes a housebrand diaper in size small. You can find it here:
http://www.northshorecare.com/northshor ... riefs.htmlAs for diaper rash, I'd like to recommend a product that I find helpful when i have a rash thats particularly bad. I'm talking when I have red spots when the skin has rubbed off and it hurts like heck. It's called Calmoseptine, and you can probably find it at Walgreens. It is on the expensive side, at around 10 bucks for a tube, but if your son gets bad rashes, it may be worth it. What sets it apart from other rash creams is that it acutally has an analgesic built in, menthol. It really does feel soothing on the skin.
Since he is severely disabled, and probably isn't walking.. it is crucial to get a product that has outstanding leak guards in order to prevent leaks while sitting. Another factor is padding coverage. It is absouletly critical for males especially to get as MUCH padding coverage as possible, because our exit point is variable as it moves around. I have found that if i wear a product that doesn't ahve leak guards or padding coverage while sitting.. I may leak.. this has happened to me when im sitting in my computer chair wearing my Medicaid-provided Attends. Speaking of Medicaid, and I mentioned this in my email to you, you may want to look into seeing if you can get David's diapers covered, if you haven't already. Some states do cover diapers under their medicaid program, some don't. Some do have good quality brands that you can get, some don't. But, it is defintetly worth a try! While the attends I get won't work in every situation, they are a huge help in reducing costs.
I hope this information is helpful to you!
Peace out!
Rob