You are not finding your post operative care reassuring.

Hi!

We get a lot of questions similar to yours at RealSelf, and it puzzles me. Where is the surgeon? How come he or she cannot satisfactorily answer your question in front of you?

I can tell you that my own plastic surgery practice in Manhattan would not thrive unless we constantly called patients after surgery and frequently saw them in our office - specially if there is a problem - and answered all of their questions and concerns and immediately referred them to a consultant if we thought it helpful.

But to answer your question, if in fact you have an infected stitch, this can be a stitch abscess. A tiny cut is made over the stitch, and the stitch is removed. If 30 days of antibiotics have not solved the problem, you need to go a different route.

Some stitches are permanent, others are temporary. The temporary ones can dissolve over time depending on the type of stitch used. Some will last as little as 5 days, while others will last up to 6 months.

The dissolvable stitches can create a local inflammatory reaction that causes the stitches to be pushed through the skin--something we call spitting a stitch. Permanent stitches don't cause the same spitting, but can harbor infection. If this is the case, then the only good treatment s removal of the sticthes.

Discuss this with your doctor.