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Stitches help

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Posted 3/18/2012 7:14 PM (GMT 0)
When they did my surgery, it was laproscopic. However, he did use stitches internally on my incisions where he cut the muscle and used glue to close them. All the swelling is gone except for one incision site. It kept getting caught on my clothes. I thought it was a scab. It is a stitch! It is hanging out of the healed incision site. I had NO external stitches. But this place is swollen and sore. Can I pull the remain stitch out or should I leave it alone? Anyone had this happen? I am a month post-op so I am not sure what to do! Thanks!
Posted 3/18/2012 9:09 PM (GMT 0)
You need to get a nurse or doctor to check it - get in touch with the place that did your op, or see if your primary carer can take a look. Definitely DON'T pull it! May be best to put a dressing over it so it doesn't catch, but go get it checked out!

MMM
Posted 3/19/2012 3:43 PM (GMT 0)
I had this happen with my first redo. I used finger nail clippers to snip the end as close as possible and then left it alone and it eventually just fell off. They do dissolve.

Take care,
Bill
Posted 3/19/2012 7:50 PM (GMT 0)
Yes, as the others have said don't pull it yourself. Since it's swollen and sore, is it red also? Does it look like it's infected at all? If you have any concern about infection, see any doctor you can, soonest. It's OK for a doctor to pull those stitches, gently. They're the ones that are supposed to dissolve, but sometimes get pushed up before that happens. I had a few that came up too, the first one was pulled gently, then clipped when it started to hurt.
Posted 3/21/2012 12:38 AM (GMT 0)
Do NOT pull it yourself. The best thing you can do is not touch it at all, except maybe to clean it, put some antibiotic ointment and a bandaid on. It sounds like you have a little infection around the stitch, which is probably ok but might need antibiotics, so call the doc and let them know what it looks like. People do "spit" stitches sometimes, and sometimes they leave a knot poking out, so don't worry too much. The pain, swelling, and redness are more of a concern.
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