Re: fluid coming out of incision

[Guest guest]

> Hi all

>

> My husband woke me up at 2AM this morning because there was fluid

> coming out of one of the incisions. We called the doctor and they

> are calling the pharmacy to physcribe a anti-biotic. Has this

> happened to anyone else? I'm a little concerned. The doctor claims

> that this is pretty normal after surgery. Please let me know of any

> experiences that you may have had that is similar. Thanks

Yes, I had a LOT of serous (not serious!) fluid leak from my incision, starting

while I was in

the hospital. Not to be disgusting, but when it first happened, my staples (I

had open RNY)

were puffy...and then when the fluid came out, it gushed out! Lord, what a mess!

But the

doctor said it was perfectly normal for this fluid to back up underneath the

incisions. They

put a dressing on me to absorb it and changed it regularly. It was still going

on when I left

the hospital. In fact, while I was in the lobby waiting to be picked up, I had

to change my

own dressing right there because it was leaking so badly. I went through a bunch

of pads

and boxes of gauze before it finally slowed down. At the end, I even had a tiny

little hole

where one of the staples had popped out, and it grew to about the width of a

pencil before

starting to heal up. All this was normal, according to my doc, and he just

advised me to

keep putting clean dressings on them as needed. Eventually everything closed up

and the

leaking stopped.

So don't panic. It'll go away. Just keep your dressings clean and keep plenty of

4x4 gauze

pads and tape handy!

Dep

525/440 (as of May 1)/230

Open RNY, 1/9/04

Dr. Millikan, University Surgeons

Rush University Medical Center, Chicago

[Guest guest]

I had the same problem for weeks on end. Gauze and tape really

irritated my skin after a while. I found a fantastic dressing

called MEPELEX BORDER. If your pharmacy doesn't carry them (mine

didn't), you can order them online. I forget the site...just type

in the name.....

They are silicone based and waterproof. You can even shower with

them. You change them far less than gauze and they are so much

easier on the skin. You don't even feel them! They are pricey, but

insurance may cover them.

Best of luck,

11/18/03

284/249 preop/166