Cellulitus

Happy to hear you took action quickly and got treated. Be sure to finish all of the prescription. Stay well hydrated.

Some gals have a special sleeve they wear going into surgery because you never know what might happen once you're asleep. It's printed with warnings about "no BP/IV" etc. Did you have lymphedema prior to this episode?

I plan on wearing my hot pink arm band and writing on my arm "No iv's, no bp's"  when i have my surg next month.  You have no idea what they do when you are under!  Hopefully they didn't needle stick you, but like Carol said, maybe they moved you roughly and that set it off.

i echo the others:  take all the antibiotics!!

Wintersocks, I'm really sorry you've had to deal with this. Do you know why they're calling it "atypical"? Was it an caused by an unusual  bacterium or something?

With lymphedema, cellulitis is unfortunately a high risk, and very often the direct cause is not identifiable. The entry route for the bacteria might be a paper cut, a hangnail, or just dry skin that allows micro-cracks to form. Or it may simply be impossible to track and precipitating cause. The stagnant lymph fluid typical of lymphedema is protein rich and warm, so it's the perfect breeding ground for infection. And the fact that it spreads like wildfire is what makes it ALWAYS an emergency for us.

Here's information about cellulitis with lymphedema:
http://www.stepup-speakout.org/Emergencies_and_Med...

You sure aren't alone in being stunned by your first experience with cellulitis--it's something we didn't have to consider before and it does come as a shock. You might want to ask your doctor for a prescription for an antibiotic, then fill it and keep it with you, so that if you run into trouble again you can initiate treatment immediately. Also many of us keep a supply of antiseptic wipes, topical antibiotic and bandaids with us so we can treat cuts, scrapes, insect bites or burns immediately wherever we are.

Cellulitis takes awhile to recover from, so do rest up and give yourself room to recover fully. Please keep us posted, and tell us how we can help.
Gentle hugs,
Binney

I was also curious about the "atypical" diagnosis - figured it might have been a British/American English thing...

Another day on the road to recovery: sleeping better, hopefully? I use deep breathing techniques when restless, seems to help with relaxation and can also encourage stagnant lymph flow.

Congratulations on getting scheduled for the DIEP. I had mine while under anesthesia for the mastectomy, so a long surgery but got good results. Just a small patch of fat necrosis and a feeling of fullness due to truncal LE but manageable. That may have come about because I required full axillary node dissection two weeks later. 

Assuming DIEP protocols are similar to here in the US, you will get antibiotics pre-op and be seen frequently during the 4 or 5 day hospital stay so any flares should be caught early. Ask the surgeon what experience they have had with lymphedema patients. 

Share your history of infection with all staff taking care of you so that scrupulous preventive measures will be followed. Consider bringing a couple of large signs to post on your door and above the bed reading "no BP/IV on RIGHT arm"; or maybe a positive statement would be better (BP/IV on LEFT arm ONLY)?

Meanwhile, rest up and think about a nice event you can plan for yourself a year from now when, once again, cancerland will be in the past...