I Had a WLE for Melanoma. 6 Weeks Ago. Overnight the Incision Opened. What Do I Do?

I had a WLE6 weeks ago on my left shin. Stitches stayed in recommended time and it looked good. 4 weeks post op had small surface infection. Went in and wound cleaned steri strips replaced. Now 6 weeks after surgery the steri strips came off and overnight the wound opened and looks infected. What happens now? How will the wound be closed?

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infection 6 weeks post-op incision open wound

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2 Doctor Answers | Asked by Caroline3769

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Melanoma wound opening up

Best course of action is to see your dermatologist or plastic surgeon who did the procedure right away

Anatoli Freiman, MD

4 reviews

Toronto Dermatologist

I Had a WLE for Melanoma. 6 Weeks Ago. Overnight the Incision Opened. What Do I Do?

Your first step should be following up with your dermatologist or plastic surgeon. Typically, when a wound opens six weeks after a surgical procedure it will need to heal on its own. Especially if there is evidence of infection. It is highly likely that attempting to re-close the wound would result in it opening again. If you have other health issues that might affect wound healing, such as diabetes, they should be tightly controlled. Over time the wound should heal on its own but you need... more