“Skin Died After Tummy Tuck!”

Thanks Speedracer! Please check the reply I gave to Imarnn for the update on my status... Thanks again!!! :-)

thank you for sharing your experience with me. Its been very helpful... i'm trying to be patient! please see the reply i made to Imarnn for my current status.

Hey Imarnn! Let me give you an update: I've ben debridded 3 times and I've been using a vac for weeks now... It's not bad, except the cost! My insurance wont cover it, so I'm paying $800 a week for the treatment and I am on sick leave. I just hope everything turns out all right... but let me tell you: I am sooooo sorry I did this! My parents and my boyfriend have been inmensely worried, My bank account is going down (well, my savings!) and sincethe doctor ordered me to drink a bunch of vitamin supplements like centrum, vit C, Zinc, 2 bottles of boost a day and a high protein diet, I'm gaining weight!!!! Thank you for sharing your experience with me, it really gives me hope that someday I might be "normal" again! :-) Oohhh!!! If I could turn back time...

let me know about the revision.... although I cant have one for a year my surgeon said, I might think about it as I am really not happy with how it looks right now :(

Thank you for your kind words... I really appreciate it! See the reply i made to Imarnn for my current status. Byee!!

Hey Krystal! Hope you get better soon. From what the doctors have told me, its going to leave an unpleasant scar... My doctor will fix it afterwards, though. This is my 5th week on the vac and finally Im seeing some improvement. The people that treat me with the vac are considering using the hyperbaric chamber to speed up the healing but it's very expensive and I have no more money for them!! Its tough paying 800/week but hopefully it'll all be over soon. If you give me your email we can contact eachother and send before/after pics, what do you think?

sure you can reach me at krystalnameth@hotmail.com I would love to hear from someone who is a bit further ahead in the healing than I am. This is my 3rd week on the vac and lucky for me, I live in Canada so mine is free :) Hope to hear from you soon.

Krystal we seem to have almost identical stories. My wound measured about 29cm and 6cm at widest. I had the skin necrosisalms it got infected. I too have had debridement surgery and a wound vac now for almost 4 weeks. I am extremely suprised how well it's filled in. Next week I'm supposed to have it closed . I'm extremely nervous about it getting infected and opening again. I m wondering if I should just let it continue to heal inside out. I really can't afford to be off work any longer not to mention the expense of the wound vac that my insurance is not covering. I had my tummytuck the end of march and the wound vac placed April 8. Was wondering how many weeks you actually ended up having the vac? Was a skin closure an option for you at anytime?I'm not concerned with scarring. I just don't even care what it looks like at this point I just want to be healed!

I ended up having the vac for almost 5 weeks. I got it at about week three and I have had it off now for 6 weeks and I am finally closing on my own. My surgeon is not closing it but rather allowing it to close on its own. I have silver nitrate on it occasionally to help the skin move over the wound. one side is closed and the most open part is in the middle right under they belly button. Lucky for me I live in Canada and in my area my Vac was covered so it cost me nothing. I had to pay for my original surgery but nothing since. When you say you are having it closed what do you mean? grafts? my dr said it is best to leave it alone and let it close and it heals well. The scar will only end up being abound a cm thick I think. I dont really look at it as it was grossing me out and I was too upset. Lucky for me my husband has been changing my dressing most of the time so that I dont have to go get it done everyday at the clinic. I still try to go see the nurses 3 times a week just for them to be sure that I dont have infection, use the silver nitrate and measure it for my records. feel free to contact me if you like at my email of krystalnameth@hotmail.com.

Well update... got the vac dressing off a week ago yesterday and I grew 2 cm of skin tissue so it is getting smaller finally. I am feeling so much better after the vac dressing was off as I found it painful to have it changed every two days. I think I am officially on the mend. Still wearing the binder everyday and now back to dressing changes everyday but I finally feel that I am making progress. Hope to wear real clothes in a couple of months :) Cant wait to wear a pair of jeans however that seems so far off!! Thanks for your thoughts.

Hello girls!!!! Here is my update: On march 16, the doc sent me to take hyperbaric oxigen therapy (with the vac at the same time). I took 9 hyperbaric oxigen therapies and ended on march 26. That same day they took the vac off (finally!). But this was after I called the doctors the day before and told them that I couldnot pay the treatments anymore (my health plan doesn't cover it). The vac cost $800/week and the hyperbaric treatments cost $625/week and the vac I had since jan 27, so you can imagine how much I've paid. And even though I paid all that, I had to take a leave from work, the wound didn't close! from a 6cmx6cmx1cm it only reduced to 3cmx3.4cmx1cm. So I talked to the doctors and they agreed that it was best that I was off the vac and started the dressing changes everyday. The doctors signed the paperwork and Istarted working on monday (apr05). I am currently using Acticoat absorbent with silver to treat the wound and now that I'm off the vac is when I've seen the biggest improvement. I dont want to be skeptical and say that I got played with the vac treatments, but I kinda feel like that. In the beginning they told me that with the vac it was going to close in 4 weeks and it's been a 2 1/2 months and my wound is still halfway! And to top it all off, since I was off from work and staying in my parent's house, couldnt exercise, walk, sweat or sit for long periods of time and the doctor told me to eat full, complete meals (specially proteins) I gained 20 pounds! so I'm kinda stretching my skin a little... since I'm 5'10" it doesnt show thaaaaaat much, but there is a difference.... I look a bit more thick in my torso :-( But my boyfriend ecourages me a lot saying not to worry that when I get back to my usual eating habits and lose the extra pounds Im gonna look great! So, ever since I got back to work on monday, I started my diet, and returned to my normal life and just let my body heal itself. Maybe in my case "less is more". Krystal, I know how you feel about the clothes issue... since the wound is right in your waist you cant use anything that gives pressure to that area! I had to buy maternity jeans and pants for work and I make sure that every shirt I use covers the spandex part! My plastic surgeon has been great with me... I see him every week and he tells me not to worry that he's going to fix any scar that the ulcer leaves and he did several debridments and has never charged me a dime (thank goodness!!!). Girls, thank you for your wishes! It really means a lot to me!

How are things going?

Hey Krystal! Things are going good, Right now I only have a small hole where a cotton swab fits. I clean it (with the cotton swab and the wound cleanser) every two days so it can stimulate the flesh and it can keep closing. Everything should be fully closed by next week. So, that means that I should be able to go to the beach safely for the 4th of july weekend!!! :-) How abot you? how's your recovery going?

I was at the clinic today to have the nurse look at it and clean it. I usually do that every day and have only a scab on it now about a 1 x 1.5 cm. It doesnt look all that great but it is a lot better than I thought I was going to end up with! dealing with some nerve pain which I dont appreciate much and a lot of swelling over the day. Have to figure out how to lose all the weight I gained eating well and laying around for 4.5 months!!! I still have some dressing, polysporin, adaptic and a abd pad for comfort so it doesnt rub on my waistband. still wearing my binder occasionally but it is pretty stretched out and getting ugly from being worn so much!! And you guys? how are things?