Question:
Is it ok to use Neosporin and peroxide your staple line?

I have one staple line under the left breast area and it is getting a bit red and painful. I want to stop infection before it starts, all of the other places are fine with the exception of the drain site but I am keeping Neosporin on that. Is it ok to use peroxide and Neosporin on it then keep it covered with a clean gauze pad?    — Christina B. (posted on June 15, 2003)


June 15, 2003
I am a nurse and this is what I would usually do, but my surgeon said NO neosporin. It makes the incision too soft. Also, I had foot surgery last year and was told the same thing. But i would say you will get different answers on this. Did you check with your doc?
   — Delores S.

June 15, 2003
My dr. told me the oposite, or maybe it was a nurse, I called the BTC hotline. I was told neosporen was okay since I am almost 4 weeks out and my incisoin was so dry. I have one spot that started to get infected. The on call surgeon told me neosporen covered with gauze or a bandaid after cleaning it with soap and water. He specifically told me not to clean the infected area with peroxide.
   — Heather M.

June 15, 2003
When I had my breast reduction the incision line under my left breast got slightly infected... but I was also having a reaction to the adhesive on the tape that they used over the stitches after the surgery (my skin was blistering, it wasn't painful or anything, it just looked really funky). The nurse said neosporin was fine to use when I called, she said it would help with removing the tape... as the infection healed (it was a skin infection, they suspected cellulitis, the Dr. prescribed cipro to assist with this) and once the reaction from the tape had healed completely the doctor asked me to stop using neosporin and use only peroxide on the opening that remained. She said to wash with antibacterial soap, rinse thoroughly with warm water, pat dry with a sterile gauze pad, apply peroxide at the opening site, then cover with a clean sterile pad. I'm not a doctor or a nurse, but this is the same set of instructions I got when I had a mild infection in the area around a tattoo that I got. Oddly, the tattoo had healed fine for the first week and a half, it was almost completely healed when my new puppy scratched my arm while we were playing and I believe that may have been what caused the infection... it showed up about 5 days after that, the area was red and warm and slightly swollen... cipro and the same routine took care of it though :) Good luck! ~ Kim ~
   — Kimberly J.

June 15, 2003
I was told to use a mild antibacterial soap, and then neosporin or a&d ointment. It helped it heal quicker, and didn't get infected
   — mellyhudel

June 15, 2003
fine with the neosporin, but the peroxide I was adviced to "cut" the strenght of it with saline (available cheap from any pharmacy) 1/2 and 1/2 - with the saline it's not so harsh.
   — [Deactivated Member]

June 15, 2003
i was told neosporin everyother day is ok, but no peroxide at all. they explained peroxide does not know the difference between good and bad skin & bacteria, and kills both. my staple line is taking awhile to heal in certain places, other parts it is fine? weird? i keep mine uncovered as much as possible. when i go out, i cover with gauze but no tape or bandaides, my skin had a major reaction to that stuff! good luck healing
   — heather S.

June 15, 2003
I was told soap and water, neosporine will clog the scar and not let it heal or breath. Mine did fine with just daily soap and water.
   — janice L.

June 16, 2003
When I worked with heart surgery patients, we sent them hope with instructions to clean the incisions with mild soap and water, dry them gently and leave open to air. No ointments or creams intil the incisions were completely healed. My DH and I both had WLS surgery. We each had to use an antibacterial soap before surgery, and we just used it up at home afterwards. No problems with any incisions!
   — koogy

June 16, 2003
My sister works for the FDA, and she is constantly telling me not to use perioxide on deep wounds. She said that perioxide pushes the infectious ingredients back into the wound as opposed to out. She said to use alcohol, ( IS SHE CRAZY OR WHAT !!) I used a betadine solution on the wound I had, after washing with antibacterial soap, and air drying. When I was going out, I used neosporin and a bandage, but when I came back home, I went through the same old regimen to get air. Of course this was for a wound to my buttocks, I am currently pre-op (surgery date 6-25-03) Good luck, and please share some insight with me on what works best for you.
   — Pamela C.

June 16, 2003
I'm still Pre-op but after I had my C Section, my OB told me to pour hydrogen peroxide on my large incision every day, several times per day. Since it was under a large apron of fat, I also used a sanitary napkin to absorb the yellow itchy juice that leaked out. I've always heard that hydrogen peroxide was great for wounds. Well, I had that incision heal really quickly, with no infection under my apron of fat in the hot summer of southern California, so I would recommend the peroxide. My OB even flushed the wound through the drain with the peroxide. Didn't hurt me and I think it's what kept me from getting an infection.
   — Lisa L.

June 17, 2003
I recently graduated the University of Miami (Fl) with a degree in Microbiology and it is a standard in this particular community that hydrogen peroxide is not the best choice for superficial wounds of this kind. Please do not take this as fact, as I am not a dr. but I am pretty sure that the preferred treatment on a skin wound is alcohol. Good Luck!
   — Tara J.




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