HEAVY leaking incision site

six days post op(TAH)and was doing great. This morning my incision started leaking a fluid mixed with a little blood quite heavily. Lost about a quart of fluid when I called doctor. Went in and now have been re opened and packed with gauze. Will have a visiting nurse 2 times a day to change wound for a while. I am a little flummoxed. I don't remember what the doctor called it. Anyone have anything like this. Got any advice?

Hi tiggerlt: I think it's called wound dihiscence. My vertical incision opened up and it was like a zipper--the whole bottom half opened up. They think I popped one stitch and then it just kept going. Like you, I was gushing blood and fluids.

They had to do wetpacking with a twice daily change. Home health nurses came to show a family member how to change the wetpacking and then a family member took over from there. (It was in a spot I could not see so I couldn't change it myself.) I needed the wetpacking for about a month. Had to go to the gyne for a weekly check-up to make sure I was healing ok and that there was no infection.

Dr also put me on antibiotics (which later led to a yeast infection).

As long as you can keep it clean and stay away from infection, this is a hassle more than anything. It was really scary at first--I thought I would need more surgery but the dr said it's fairly common. I was afraid to move for the first few days fearing that I'd make it worse.

One helpful tip is that water stimulates healing so I tried to shower in the morning and at night. Had to be really gentle with the wound, though, and not touch it, just soap it up gently and let the soap rinse away.

I didnt have this happen to me but wish you well and hope it heals soon. good luck , heal up
big hugs
lisa

So sorry to hear about your complications.... please take good care of yourself.

	Quote:
Originally Posted by tiggerlt six days post op(TAH)and was doing great. This morning my incision started leaking a fluid mixed with a little blood quite heavily. Lost about a quart of fluid when I called doctor. Went in and now have been re opened and packed with gauze. Will have a visiting nurse 2 times a day to change wound for a while. I am a little flummoxed. I don't remember what the doctor called it. Anyone have anything like this. Got any advice?

Did the doctor reopen you or did it do it itself? If the doc did it, how did he do it?

Hi Vet tech

There was a small opening where the liquid started coming out. I felt like a maple tree that had a faucet/tap in it that would not turn off. The doctor just pryed back the incision. Both my DH and DD were with me. My DD's comment was: "Wow that is impressive!" She said I was squirting like a fountain. It really didn't hurt too much as it is still numb there. She re-opened about 5 inches and than packed with gauze. She said it is actually very common and a good thing that it happen when it did or the fluid would have become infected and caused much worse problems. Doctor called it "something" but I was over whelmingly distracted and didn't write it down. It wasn't the wound opening intself but caused because the incision started to close at the top creating a pocket that filled with fluid. (I had had stiches inside and staples outside. The stables were removed the day of discharge from the hospital.)

I had the same thing happen, three times since my TAH w/BSO. My gyn said the same thing about it being good that the fluid filled pocket releasing via the incision so the fluid did not become an infection. I am on antibiotics for UTI and for the third opening of my incision.

Hang in there! Please contact your doctor should you have fever or any other problems with your incision.