Question:
The pain in the left incision just started today.What should I do?

Should I wait and call my Doc on Monday.Don't forget I seen him Friday and was fine .I am 9 days post op.    — davonjack (posted on February 27, 2010)

February 27, 2010
Natasha, we aren't doctors and I'm sure others will answer with the same answer I am fixing to give you. If you are concerned then call your surgeon. It really doesn't matter if you saw him yesterday if the pain started today. Having said that here are some things you may want to consider and be prepared to tell your surgeon if you call him. What came to my mind to ask you is, what type of pain are you having (constant or on and off? dull pain or stabbing)? Do you recall doing anything prior to the pain starting that may have caused it such as picking up something heavy or twisting a certain way, or did it just start out of the blue? Is the area painful to the touch or is it a deeper pain or both? Are you running any fever (this is a biggie in my own experience)? Are you able to keep food and liquids down? Have you been able to have regular BM's since surgery? Is there anything that you've been able to identify that you can do to make the pain stop or lessen significantly (such as applying pressure, heat, etc.)? Have you taken anything for the pain and if so, what effect did it have? On a scale of 1 - 10 what is the level of pain you are in? Last but not least, did your surgeon give you any guidelines regarding what types of things might warrant a call to him (such as a temperature above 100 or inability to keep liquids and solids down)? Speaking for myself when I had my RNY in 2000 I ran a temperature the entire time I was in the hospital. It would go up and down but nothing horrible. They discharged me from the hospital after 5 days (this was an open revision so I was kept in the hospital longer than most these days) I was still running a low-grade temperature when discharged. I was told to call my surgeon if the temperature exceeded 99.9. Well a week later which made me two weeks post-op my temperature finally crossed that barrier. Per his instructions I called him and because I lived out of state he advised me to go to the ER and have them call him. The diagnosis was a very nasty post-op infection and I ended up in the hospital for another 5 days on heavy duty antibiotics. Moral of that story is to pay attention to what your body is telling you, follow any post-op instructions you may have been given by your surgeon and when in doubt pick up the phone and call. Better safe than sorry! Hopefully it is nothing major but just in case it is something that needs to be checked out please call him and then update us as you are able.
   — Kellye C.

February 27, 2010
I agree with the above answer. The surgeon's office is there for you no matter what the problem or question may be. Who better than them to call if you have even the tiniest problem. They will do everything to make sure you are going through smoothly & with out any unnecessary discomfort. Call them first thing Monday when you wake up. If the pain is worst, get to the E.R. Don't play waiting games with problems. Best of luck!
   — SPIRIT2002

February 28, 2010
I think I can help a little. The answers they gave were good, but having had a similar problem I might be able to shed a little light. The left upper incision in a lap (I'm assuming that is what you had, since you didn't specify) is where most of the work is done through. The larger items are inserted there and there is more trauma there than any of the other places involved. That contributes to pain in that area. I also developed an infection in that incision which became really painful suddenly. I thought I had torn something loose, and called the surgeons office. They made an emergency appointment for me and he opened the incision and I had to insert sterile gauze into the wound until it healed and closed up. You definitely need to contact your doctor with any unusual or sudden intense pain. You've just had a major surgery, and there is possibility for serious infection. Better safe than sorry definitely applies. Good luck with it and have faith, this will pass and you have a new and wonderful new life ahead of you. Let us know how it turns out.
   — Dusty Ray Vaughn