I've been butchered!

[~max~]

Hi! As some of you may remember, I had a few stitches done last Tuesday and went to have them removed today. Well, she removed them, but it turns out the cut hasn't healed yet! So she put a couple of little strips on it to close it, and instructed me to not have a shower/bath until next friday (eeeeeeeeeeek!!!!).
Now, my question is: is it normal custom to remove stitches when the wound is obviously still open?? And she didn't disinfect it or anything, so is it likely to get infected?

Worryingly yours. Max.

[spurslady]

Sounds a bit dodgy to me, but I am no medical expert.

[missyR]

I'm no medical expert, so i suggest you definetley consult a doctor about this as perhaps it could lead to infection which could lead to something worse... but what i'm trying to say is that i don't think that is right because the whole point of stitches is so they heal the wound! She probably should have cleansed it to seeing as though you won't be able to shower. But i would urge you to consult a proffesional about this.

[spurslady]

Have a look at this site, it may not be your area but it gives you a general idea about how to look after your wound. If you are not happy ring NHS direct on 0845 4647, they will help (hopefully) to allay any fears you may have.

http://www.ubht.nhs.uk/eDerm/Skin%20surgery/wo und_care.htm

here is the link for NHS direct site
http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/

[-Zorro-]

I hope you are feeling better Mrs McClain

[zimzam]

There is always a time limit to remove stitches. A wound heals from the bottom upwards so obviously it was considered that the wound was not deep enough to cause problems and butterfly stitches would now work and close the top part of the flesh. I think stitches have to come out between 7-10 days and depending on the depth of the original cut then sometimes an area does not heal over in the given time. When I had stitches in my calf I ended up with strips of plaster and I still had a bath with one leg hanging over the bath and had no showers. You can still have a bath but you will have to replace strips of plaster. Its like a white paper cellotape so get some from a chemist, but a few days without a shower/bath is no problem if you simply strip wash.

[~max~]

Ow ow owwwwww....:-(

Thanks for your advice! When she removed the stitches it didn't look infected, just open....not bleeding either. I hope it doesn't get infected, and that it's going to close properly and not leave me with a horrible bumpy scar!!! :-(
I guess I'll see what happens on Friday.

[~max~]

Oh thanks Zimzam, that's made me feel better! :-)
It did look just like you said, as if the bottom part was sealed, as there was not bleeding, but not the top part: as if the wound has a mouth....(not sure how to describe it! lol)

So maybe I'm not going to die of gangrene just yet.....

[naz_nomad]

you'd normally leave them in for a week ...