Anyone ever had the incision burst?

gumshoe

I just got home home from Emergency after waking up covered in fluid.



My incision had opened in a small area. This was my third re-excision for a lumpectomy and I've had way more pain with this one than I had with the others. (I didn't have any drains because my surgeon wanted the space to fill in with fluid for a more natural look.)



The pain, however, was pretty bad for a week. I was in to see my GP last week, who put me on antibiotics for what she thought was an infection. Then I saw my surgeon on Thursday who thought it looked okay, but said to keep an eye on it.



Well, I sure didn't expect it to open up and drain! It scared the heck out of me to wake up completely soaked. I was actually hoping I had wet the bed!



Anyone else had this happen?

akmom

That must have been scary, Gumshoe! Is the pain any better or worse after the fluid drained? What did they do at Emergency?

Sorry no answers, just questions. Hang in there...

Dale

gumshoe

The pain is different - the pressure is gone, but the open area is pretty raw, and I'm back to wearing a binder for support. All they did was take a swab of the area (ouch) and hand me a bunch of abdominal pads to catch the fluid.



The Emergency dept. at Surrey Memorial was a nightmare! The doctor was good though.

barbe1958

I've had a incision revision open up, but with blood, not clear fluid, so it was a bit different. Your body just doesn't want as much fluid as you are producing. I'd like to think it would settle down shortly as your body will "learn" to absorb the excess. Sounds like weird logic about using the fluid to fill a divot from surgery. I found after three biopsies (lumpectomies) that my breast naturally filled in the dip.

Were you getting unclean margins? Was that the point for the revisions? Your body can only take so much, and if the surgeon scraped to make sure all breast tissue was removed, that could be your pain. What a hassle for you!!! I hope you feel better sooner rather than later, sweetie!

gumshoe

Thanks barbe1958 for the response.



Yes, my re-excisions were to clear the margins. I think you're right and the fluid just had nowhere else to go, except all over me and all over the bed. My poor husband was doing everything but boiling water and getting clean towels!



It's still leaking, so I'm just going to see my surgeon on Monday and hope she has some kind of solution for me. She did tell me to just show up if I had any further problems, so that's what I'll do.



In the meantime, maybe I'll try sleeping upside down!

Joanne_53

I had an infection in the lymph node incision. This was extremely painful and hard for about 4 days -- without much success with on-call doctors and not wanting to spend a Saturday night in the ER, I iced it and then applied heat and took Tylenol.  Well .... it finally "exploded" which shocked me ... it was full of "pus".  I guess the infection had abcessed.  Thankfully my sister was here and she "cleaned" me up -- washed the area with hot water numerous times and then peroxide and then a sterile gauze and tape.  I had an appointment the next day with the Surgeon so my sister re-dressed it before this appointment.  The surgeon removed the pad, cleaned it with an iodine cleaner and redressed it.  She said it was healing good and not to be alarmed.  She said if I could leave it to the air that would allow it to heal better.  So I wore an old top, but a towel on my bed and slept with it open and allowed it to drain.  I kept an eye on it and it continued to heal. 

I will tell you that if my sister had not been here then I would have been at the ER. This really scared me and freaked me for a lack of a word. I have never seen anything like it before.

 It has healed now -- that was 3 weeks ago.

 Sorry for the long story.

gumshoe

Hi Joanne_53 -- Thanks for sharing that info. It's great that your sister was there for you! And I'm glad it has now healed.



It sure sounds similar to my situation, being as how mine was so painful for the entire week. I couldn't even touch it. I am surprised that my surgeon didn't warn me that it might "blow"! Let me tell you, going to an ER is a very last resort for me, so that's how much it scared me!

barbe1958

You can use a menstrual pad to absorb the fluid as well. They are clean and sterile and hold a whole bunch. Keep us posted.

gumshoe

Good idea, barbe1858. I'm paranoid about infection right now so I'm changing the pad every few hours.



The hole is increasing in size, too. I'm not normally queasy but that made me queasy. I'm going to be parked outside my surgeon's office when she gets to work tomorrow!

SheChirple

I had one of my mastectomy incisions open up and had to have a couple of stitches put in to hold the incisions together, about 3 wks post op.  Fortunately, there was no infection, so little fluid leak.  It's not all that unusual.  Important thing is to keep it clean and free of infection.

Pelicangirl

Funny that I saw this thread when I logged on! I had been having some "leakage"from my left breast which is my DIEP recon side for several days..trickle of a thin reddish brown fluid which I assumed to be old blood and serous stuff. Then this past Wed. night I woke SOAKED in fluid and when I lifted my night shirt I was horrified to see that my right breast which is the TRAM side was literally SPURTING blood . I did not panic...I grabbed a towel and applied pressure but soaked thru that towel and another in less than two to three minutes. I called 911 because I was by myself and the paramedics got here quickly. By that time I was on towel three and the bleeding had slowed to a trickle. Long story short...the paramedics called ahead and there was a two to three hour wait at all local hospitals. I had them call my surgeon who told them if they could get the bleeding to stop, to just dress the wound and leave me at home and for me to come in to his office the next day,....but of course to call 911 again if bleeding came back. So that is what I did. The next day I saw my surgeon's nurse practitioner...she concluded I probably had a hematoma or pocket of serous fluid in the right breast that needed to come out and finally did. Through a hole between sutures. The "blood"was clearly not fresh bright red blood but rather a dingy reddish brown color. Still the amount and the spurting quality scared me. She said I did the right thing by calling 911. I wish our surgeons did a better job of preparing us for these possible "leaks and spurts" so we would not be so alarmed when they happen. And, as someone else pointed out, sanitary pads are best thing for plugging these leaks...I got long thin maxipads and cut them into thirds..then just tuck them into my sports bra...very comfortable and absorbent.

Joanne_53

Thankfully you are ok -- you did a great job.  I am not sure I would have remained as calm as you did. 

gumshoe

Wow, Pelicangirl, that sounds almost exactly like my experience! I definitely would have called 911 if I had been on my own because, frankly, would could ever expect that? How scary for you. Has it slowed down now?

I saw my surgeon this morning and she said "Well, you must have rolled over on it!" Really? I didn't know I was supposed to keep it in a cage! She was joking of course. Anyway, as it turns out, she can't even re-stitch it so I have to leave it open and let it heal on its own: 2 weeks to a month.

It's really gross to look at so I try not to. I've had to put the binder back on and I just stuff pads down the front of it. It's still draining.

I also can't get it wet (no showers ) so I have to suffer through more birdbaths for the foreseeable future. 

  

sundermom

Unfortuntately, I had my incision come open while on vacation at Disney World. I had to go the the ER and get stapled together and then have surgery to remove my implant after I got home. Similar situation . . . I woke up and my shirt and bed were wet. I went to the mirror lifted up my shirt to find about a 4 inch gaping incision and could see my breast implant. I had been complaining of warmth and arm pain on that side for weeks. The PS kept saying " I don't see any signs of infection. It's probably from the radiation or lymphdema." Whatever! It just solidified in my mind that we know our bodies best and medicine is just a guessing game.



PS I now have a tissue expander (again) and started experiencing the same symptoms. Guess what? The PS prescribed a round of antibiotics and the arm pain and warmth are almost gone.

Mooleen

I am 4weeks post op UMX with tissue expanders. My breast cavity is filled with fluid (seroma) and is not going away. It is not stretching the skin or getting worse. I still have the stitches and I am very uncomfortable and still taking pain oills. On my last PS visit on Wed he told me he was going out of town next week and he didn't want me to get in trouble while he is gone so he left the stitches in. He didn't say so, but I think he has some concerns about the incision opening. He says draining it makes it susceptible to infection. He tells me not to worry, but you all know how that goes. I am kind of freaking out. I live alone and live 40 miles from the hospital. The Drs just don't tell us everything!

gumshoe

Hi Mooleen,

Oh, that sounds painful! It sounds pretty similar to how I was feeling at the time too.

Yes, he should have told you if that was his concern. Part of why I was so scared was that I had no idea that could even happen!

One thing, though, if it does happen to you: when I went to the hospital and for my follow-up visit to the surgeon, they both said there was nothing they could do and the only course of action was to just let it drain naturally, letting it soak into (preferably sterile) gauze or pads. I can't say for your situation of course because I didn't have tissue expanders, but something to think about if you're that far from a hospital.

And when I have more surgery? I'm sleeping on the couch so I don't roll over in bed! 

And sundermom -- I have no idea how I missed your post. At Disney World?? How awful! 

Mooleen

I slept on my couch for the first few weeks. I was more comfortable. The Dr never told me that, I found it by googling "fluid in the breast". Since my diagnosis I have been reading up on anything I can find. I just found this site a couple of days ago. It is a great forum.

gumshoe

I didn't sleep on the couch until after the incision burst, and boy did it ever make a difference! I didn't think about it either for any of my surgeries. 

Yes, it is a great forum especially when things like this happen. Keep us posted  

mtdawghouse

I had a hematoma a month after breast cancer surgery in June 2011. 4 days prior, I was seen by 2 cancer doctors, noone said anything as I had a lot of blood build up. Needless to say it blew out through the wound & stitches. Had to go back to surgeon that packed it with 2 feet of tape to heal inside out. Put me a month out for treatment then they gave me 8 weeks of radiation. I still have problems and feel to this day it hasn't healed.

gumshoe

mtdawghouse Yes, mine was overlooked too. It takes SO long to heal and then never seems quite right.

IamNancy

I had my re-excision surgery about 6 weeks ago.. never bothered me until the last few days it got sore, swollen and hard around the incision.. I also had a UTI that they were given me antibiotics for - I felt so sick.. when I woke up this morning my top was soaked with brownish fluid, the pain and hardness was gone and I feel so much better..I don't know if I should call my breast surgeon or my oncologist..or just wait til Monday.. I can;t even see an opening in the incision but its all so much softer I know there has to be a small hole.

Its a little unnerving.. and I am scheduled for my next chemo on Wed - I hope thei doesn't make me reshedule.

april485

Your surgeon should have explained that this was a possibility! I received this information in my "how to care for your incision" instructions when they released me. I also had a second surgery to get wider margins, and I have a seroma under there and a little bit of pressure, so I am keeping an eye on it.

When I went for my post op appt this past Tuesday, the BS said to not be surprised that if I rolled over on it or bumped it, it could possibly leak fluid and to call her immediately if it happened so she can determine what was needed (ie if it was infected or just oozing) so I am already aware that this is a possibility. I feel less pressure today than I did all week, so I am thinking it is finally reabsorbing into the surrounding cavity at this point.

So sorry this happened to you. Surgeons need to at least tell you! I am glad mine did.

IamNancy

Thanks April - glad I saw these posts so I didn't freak out all weekend.. I'll watch it this weekend and call on Monday- just the fact that I feel so much better makes me think its all ok..

kira1234

IamNancy, You say this happenjed after your chemo. It sounds very much like what happenend to me except my opening was much larger. I would call the surgeon so he/she is aware. In my case I did get an infection that required a hospital stay, and stopped chemo till healed.

IamNancy

kira - I did call the surgeon.. she said chemo makes your skin weak - and if its still draining on Monday I have to go see her so she can determine if I can have chemo this week..  its still draining slowly..I hope it stops.

kira1234

I so hope it stops. For me it didn't, but then my break was much worse! I never finished chemo because it never healed! At least during the window for chemo!

gumshoe

 IamNancy I hope it resolves quickly. If it's draining slowly, that might be a good sign that there isn't much fluid build-up. Good luck 

IamNancy

I went to see the surgeon on Monday and she said its not infected but I should watch it .. here it is a week later an its still draining... sorta drip-drip-drip.. I wonder how long this will last?

gumshoe

Mine lasted for about a month! Hope yours wears itself out more quickly. It's awful, I know

IamNancy

gumshoe - how did you keep it from ruining your clothes? I am keeping a minipad inside my bra but it still ends up leaking out ..

gumshoe

Hi Nancy - I know, I completely ruined a pair of pyjamas so I learned the hard way too

I actually bought abdominal wound pads from the medical store and used those. You can cut them in half too if need be, but I folded mine in half because I had so much leakage.

You can either tape it on (I used paper tape because my skin's so sensitive), or put the pad inside your camisole or bra. They stay put quite nicely and absorb better than mini-pads.