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So a guy backed into me last week and seat belt hit my abdominal incision and popped open the end stitch. I didn't notice it when it happened. About 4 days ago I rolled on my side and it hurt and that is when I noticed it was really red and had a almost whitehead appearance. So I got my med kit out and swabbed it with iodine sterile cotton and it tore the covering skin just doing that. I got a clear mildy red tinged fluid weeping from it. Went to my general physician for a standing appt and had him look at it and he did say that it was infected and prescribed Cephalexin 500mg 3 times daily. I called my surgeon and he was on vacation and they didn't have an opening unless I came right in at the time I nave to pick up my kids from school. So I declined that. Now my surgeons nurse is acting all pissy like I did some social medical fopau by going to my GP. SO I have to wait until Wed to see my surgeon. I am worried that the drainage is going to use the resovoir tube to travel down to the other parts of the system. It seems like a drainage tube bag would be in order being that there is a pocket there where the resovoir sits? Should I go to the ER? ?I have a history of osteomylytis which is in remission but that was in my femur. The general area just is uncomfortable like a mild pulled muscle along the outer lower abdo wall.

53@MVA wrote:So a guy backed into me last week and seat belt hit my abdominal incision and popped open the end stitch. I didn't notice it when it happened. About 4 days ago I rolled on my side and it hurt and that is when I noticed it was really red and had a almost whitehead appearance. So I got my med kit out and swabbed it with iodine sterile cotton and it tore the covering skin just doing that.

I am tempted to at least speculate that the seatbelt incident had nothing to do with this and that you had some infection cooking and it simply worked itself to the surface and drained. Keep us posted and don't let anything keep you from getting to your surgeon as soon as possible.

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I’m not a doc, but....
What’s the downside to going to an ER?
What’s the downside of NOT going to an ER, if this is serious and prompt intervention could spare you _____________ (fill in the blank).
Bob

I don't know. GP didn't seem overly concerned. Surgeons nurse was like "ok" he will see u Wed. No imminent concern in her voice. Both Dr's know my ful history. I could get a penectomy and go tgf ! Unfortunately my wife's insurance has that excluded as well.

If you are concerned an ER visit may ease your mind. They may order lab work to see if you have elevated WBC’s, an indicator of infection. I’m not sure they would place an indwelling drain and dismiss you from hospital! The cephalexin should be working on the localized site infection by this point. If you feel lethargic, have temperature, growing redness of skin at infection site, definitely get to ER. You certainly don’t want sepsis!
All the best to you. I hope this helps.

I would not let an ER doc that knows NOTHING about implants and the complications of implant infections touch my incision or put in a drain. I might let him give me an antibiotic and take a CBC for white count but many implant infection (which hopefully this is not) do not produce elevated counts because they are walled off.

I would get to my implant surgeon and put this issue on him, not give him an excuse to blame another doctor for messing with his procedure.

Damn went in wed for my appt and that nurse had her daggers drawn. Rude assed aggressive not sure what to call it? Dr pumped me up to max and let me walk around the exam room is some discomfort for about 3 min I am assuming to assure him there is no leak in the system. He wanted to prescribe bactrim but I told him the last time I was on that my penis developed a yeast infection and basically it killed the top layer of skin off almost the entire penis. So he said keep taking the Cephalexin. Seems to be healing up although my pants ,underwear , seat belt, counters in the kitchen and my desk bump or rub the incision site. Also had a slight skin reaction to the Walgreens band aids I was using.
Discomfort wise the bulbous tips @ the glans and the very left tip seem to cause me the most intermittent pains. Also the tubing coming out of the pump is curled and looped and seems to be right at the base of my shaft ,visibly, and when touched or bumped is enormously uncomfortable. I keep trying to pull the pump further down and back while at the same time pushing on this loop but it is meeting with limited success. Dr doesn't seem concerned in the least but long term if that in itself doesn't improve I think I will find another Dr.

Damn the witchy old nurse!
Depending on may factors, speed, direction, your weight, inertia and the narrow belt can impose severe pressures on the narrow band it crosses. Sometimes a person with a full bladder can rupture their bladder in an accident. My wife still has pain and a thickened strip of tissue across her breast from 12 years ago.
Fistula's are common when a horse is bruised and do happen in humans. Anything that causes a pooling of blood internally makes a perfect host for bacteria, so I would not discount the idea the accident could have had some part in this.

I’ve seen fistulas burrow up to 12 inches in a patient, very hard to heal as they need packed and heal from the inside out. Also know I went septic once from MRSA and never had a fever. I’m petrified of infection because I am a diabetic. I had drainage from my incision and I went to my family physician because my urologist is 2 hours away and hasn’t been very helpful so far. Today I see my doctor again to check the wound and she will also check to make sure it hasn’t spread into my blood stream. After going septic I get the slightest bump like you have and my ass is at the doctor but I’m also worried about having to have this implant removed because I won’t do it again. My experience has been terrible mainly because I don’t feel my surgeon has dedicated himself to my follow up care like he should. My stitches are still as healthy as the day they went in and he’s not concerned and I feel this is why I got the infection. They burn terrible and I would think should have started to dissolve by now. Sorry for the long response I’m just frustrated.