I'm Spitting a Stitch 18wks Post Op from a BR, and It's Infected. How Can I Treat It Until my PS Gets Back in Town? (photo)

I am 18 wks post op and spitting a stitch. My PS is out of town; I have an appt with him in 6 days. I visited my primary care manager in the mean time, and he has me on keflex 500mg 4x daily. He told me apply a hot compress for 20 min twice daily, wash with dial soap, pour a cap of peroxide over the area, dab on some neosporin, and cover with band aid until my ps says otherwise. He admitted that as a pcm he didn't have much experience with surgical sites. Is the the correct advice?

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infection 3 months post-op spitting stitches

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3 Doctor Answers | Asked by ShannonR

Doctor Answers (3)
Community Comments (1)

Plastic surgeon out of town

Your plastic surgeon's practice should be covered by another plastic surgeon. Make an appointment to be seen in followup. I do not recommend use of peroxide which will dry out the skin. The redness is troubling and would not be produced simply by a spitting stitch.

Hello

What we see from your picture its looks to be an observable suture. Those are place internally and our body is and will absorb it with time. What we do in our practice is pull it out a little and trip it from the bottom. You should just leave it alone till you see your PS.

Help with Breast Reduction Complication when Plastic Surgeon Out of Town?

I'm sorry to hear about the complication you are experiencing. I think you will be best off calling your plastic surgeon's office and finding out who the “covering” plastic surgeon is. Your plastic surgeon will likely have a colleague covering his practice while he is out of town. You should be seen by the covering plastic surgeon for an accurate diagnosis and/or treatment. You may have to have an area of the incision line opened to allow for adequate drainage… I hope... more

Comments (1)

ShannonR 22 Aug 2012

The redness was from the hot compress. Sorry for not mentioning that! I saw the covering PS, and had the stitch trimmed. Now that the stitch is out of the way I'm healing much faster, and the covering PS assures that with the use of scarguard this area will not be noticeably different. Thank you all for the advice!

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