incision site might be infected

I am not to sure if my pacemaker incision site might be starting to get infected. I just had a pacemaker put in this last Thursday the 20th of February. It is still red and sore but not as much as it was. It does sting a bit at times and feels like something that should not be there. Maybe this is all normal and I am judging it wrong. Also, if I had to go in to see my doctor, I would not be able to go until Tuesday because I do not drive and I would not be able to schedule a ride with paratransit or the medical ride company associated with my insurance until tomorrow and would have to make the ride appointment for Tuesday the 25th. Am I overreacting?

1 Comments

Ever had surgery before?????

by donr - 2014-02-23 01:02:28

If not (Or even if you have) Go to SEARCH function, top right corner of page. Enter "Some tough love for Newbies." It should come up as the first or second entry. Open & read it - it's long, but will help you put this event into perspective.

Now for specifics: We cannot be sure - we cannot see it.

1) Ever had a bad cut - 4 inches long & all the way through the skin, fat & subcutaneous fascia? That someone reached inside of & stretched it , tugged at it, pulled at it? Well, it's gonna be sore & red for a while. How long depends on the individual.

2) Is the redness the same, greater or less than right after the surgery? If it is significantly worse than the next day, it may be getting infected.

3) It's GONNA BE SORE! Probably max out at the 2nd or third day. Are you touching it? Really should not be at this early stage - may introduce an infection into the open cut that exists on your skin, but NOT under it. There are all sorts of infectious bacteria that live on your skin, that are kept in check by the skin. But get them inside & they run wild in the different environment. Keep your hands off of it bare skin to skin.

4) Bandage still on it? If so, when were you told to take it off?

5) Remember item 1) above - for stinging. You got a bad cut - what do you expect?

6) Do you still have an elevated temp? If you do, you may have an infection. If not, you still may have an infection. For pocket infections , body temp is nothing much more than an indicator of dubious usefulness. It's only after an infection has REALLY taken root & you feel like trash that it is reliable as an indicator of infection.

7) Is it still OOZING? You did not say. If it is, you have a high probability of an infection.

8) Is it puffy or obviously swollen? That does not usually max out till about the 3rd or 4th day, then starts to recede.

If you cannot make it till Tues, that's what you can do.

If it looks bad in answer to all the issues I mentioned above, find a way to get to an ER or the Dr's office Monday.

Don

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