Question:
Drain slipping out on a Sunday morning; is this an emergency?

I am 3.5 weeks post-op with 2 drains. I had developed an infection 2 weeks post op and am on antibiotics (normal temperature for a week now) so the surgeon wanted to leave the drains in longer than usual until sure the infection was gone. The drainage has been clear and low, about 5 cc/day, for the past week. It is now Sunday morning and I noticed that during the night one drain has slipped about 7" out of me. The site is a bit uncomfortable but not too bad and certainly bearable. This is even though I keep the bulbs pinned to the underside of my clothes at all times to make sure there is no tension on the site. It seems not to be slipping further and I have done what I can to tape it to me to relieve any weight or tension on the site in addition to the bulb being pinned to my skirt. My question is can this situation wait 24 hrs until the doctor's office is open on Monday morning or is this an emergency room situation? Does the answer change if it manages to slip out entirely?    — BJ M. (posted on February 24, 2008)

February 23, 2008
I just had surgery 02/01/08 and my drains were removed about a week ago. I do not think if one drain has partially come out that it is an emergency. However if it came all the way out, I would go to the emergency room as a safety precaution. I was surprised when the surgeon pulled my drain out, as how much tubing was inside me; the drains are lonnnnggggg. Your surgeon should have an answering service who can page him or one of his fellow surgeons who is filling-in for him over the weekend. Mine does, and yours should too. If he doesn't, I would be asking him why not? Try calling his office number and see if you have an option to talk to an answering service or to "leave a message" which may actually connect you with his answering service. Definitely try to keep the weight off the drains and you can always clea around the drain openings with Peroxide and dab some anti-biotic ointment around. Good luck and best wishes.
   — Gina S.

February 23, 2008
Was the frain taking much fluid out of you that came out or had it slowed down? The emergency rom is not going to be able to put it back in, because the end of the drain is usually under a cut and in an RNY under the stomach. If you had blood clots in the drain each day, you should try and reach your surgeon to let him know, but if the fluid was pink or cloudy fluid and was less than a week ago, you have nothing to be concerned about. I would take gause and cover the opening and if the tube is still partilay inside, leave it until you get a call back from your doctor, but make sure it is bandaged over either way.
   — William (Bill) wmil

February 23, 2008
I would call the Hospital to check! I dont know....
   — obx100

February 23, 2008
This is really a question, do all wls require these drains? what are they. i am planning to have lap rny
   — bikermama

February 24, 2008
My dr told me it wouldn't fall out cause there is a balloon at the end inside you. Mine would come out over an inch, especially when I stood in the shower, and I would gently push it back in. I had the G-tube for a full six weeks.
   — Tawnda C.

February 24, 2008
Thanks everyone for your responses. One of the junior doctors training under my surgeon returned my call and he said as long as I wasn't experiencing any pain, to not be concerned about it. He said even if it came out completely, to not consider it an emergency and to just keep my office appointment Wednesday. With respect to the question above about what are these drains, I am not a health professional but can give you my experience. My original rny was 10 yrs ago and done open. I had one drain and it was removed painlessly before I went home from the hospital. My recent surgery was a revision to the original and done laparoscopically where I have two drains that I went home with. My surgeon said that he leaves the drains in a lot longer for revision surgeries. The drains have bulbs that dangle from the ends and every 24 hrs you are to empty the contents and measure the quantity. The first week I was home it was not unusual for me to get about 35 cc a day but it diminished greatly after that. Also when I was 2 weeks post op and developed a fever, the drainage content changed in one bulb to a greenish, cloudy liquid which helped my doctor understand what was going on (I was directly admitted to the hospital for 7 days of antibiotics via a PICC and am now home self-administering the antibiotics for another 2 weeks).
   — BJ M.

February 25, 2008
It's a no-brainer Bj. Get medical attention ASAP!
   — [Deactivated Member]