Question:
How do you care for draining wound???

I was sent home after open surgery with a 12" incesion with only a few paper bandages over the wound. I was not give any instruction or info on what was to happen.....I had surgery on 1/11/02 and the incesion has started to drain/leak...I am going thru surgical bandages like crazy and have started to cover it with have an infant diaper to in the bloodainage from the wound...Is this normal...for how long should it drain ..and what should I expect to do for care other than covering it and keeping it clean...I shower twice an day and let the water hit the incesion...I haven't seen the sergeon yet....recheck in 3 days....There is no redness or order to wound or fluid..all info would be appreciated.....    — irene B. (posted on January 26, 2002)

January 26, 2002
Call his service immediately. Only your doctor can determine if this is normal at this stage. If he is irritated by being disturbed on the weekend I would point out that you were given NO AFTERCARE instructions. I had tiny lap scars w/o any drainage issues and was able to shower. However I'm a month pre-op from a lower body lift and have a opening in my incision that is draining and requires special care as per my PS and he would KILL me if I let water hit it (I have to cover it with saran wrap in the shower). ONLY YOUR DOCTOR CAN ADVISE YOU.
   — Jill L.

January 26, 2002
I would defintely call the doctor first. my husband had open rny on monday, he also has a very large incision,the doctor did say to shower and definettely let the water hit it, this is different than a lap procedure, if your wound is the same as my husbands you have staples, looks like a zipper!his is also draining slightly, not like yours tho, good luck.
   — rebecca N.

January 26, 2002
A small place at the bottom of my incision opened up after my staples were removed and the steri-strips put on. I didn't realize it was draining until someone went into the bathroom and found a puddle of blood on the floor. I cleaned it up and put a bandage on it. I was staying with a friend who happens to be a nurse and she wasn't particularly concerned about it. However, the next day I did call my doctor and he took a look at it. Said that there is a large layer of fatty tissue between the skin and the abdominal cavity and that is where the drainage is coming from. His advice was to shower daily, keep it clean and dry. He suggested putting a clean white washcloth over it or a white and towel. He also told me to not use tape to hold bandages in place. The tape breaks down the skin and impedes healing. I used my abdominal binder to hold the bandages in place. It didn't drain badly enough for bandages but for about 3 days. After that I left it uncovered and it has healed beautifully. The opening is right at the very top of my navel - a difficult place to bandage. I would call your doctor just to be sure, but it probably isn't anything too serious. But it is much better to be safe than sorry. Good luck.
   — Patty_Butler

January 26, 2002
I had the same exact problem. I told my surgeon, and he had me come in to get the wound checked. Came to find out that my stitches had not dissolved like they were supposed to, so the wound couldn't heal. Thus the pus, blood and not healing after 3-4 weeks. I definitely think you should contact your surgeon. My scar looks bad to this day (I'm 10.5 months post-op), and I think that's because my incision was a mess! Good luck.
   — Terissa R.

January 27, 2002
i think mine didn't start draining until like the second or third week. The drainage was a light pink color. I just used a dry washcloth tucked into my bra and the waist band of my pants. To me mine seemed like a lot but, the surgeon said that it was normal for some to do that. In fact now that i'm thinking about it it had to be after my 2nd week because i already had my drain out. But, it worried me too so i called the surgeon and she had me come in so she could check it. Just call that's what they are there for and they are used to getting calls from worried patients....take care
   — deborah D.

January 27, 2002
When my incision started leaking like that I freaked, rushed to the emergency room, (which was an hour and a half away because I had to go to my surgeon's hospital because the local hospitals wouldn't take me) only to be told that it was normal, that sometimes a "pouch" of fluid builds up and then it'll release in a week or two after surgery. If you want to wait until your visit, which I would try to move up to Monday... I was eventually told to keep some neosporin on it and I covered just the leaking part with a Maxi pad.. weird but it worked.. Good luck to you!
   — Elizabeth D.

February 1, 2002
I did go to my MD and he said the draining is perfectly normal at the wound site especially in folks over 300lbs...he drew a diagram of the thickness between the inner layer of skin at the site and the outer incesion, and there is a inch or so "gap".....these are just the normal body fluids escaping...no redness, smell or swelling at the drain site, just blood tinged fluid, which will last 10 to 30 days..
   — irene B.