Keeping a wound clean

Anabel_Lee
Anabel_Lee Member Posts: 32
in Anal Cancer #1

Yesterday morning one of the area on my anal margin that had been stitched up, busted open. It's a large area and deep and when I have a bm, it gets in there. I called my surgeon's office and she said I could come in and see him. I figured he'd give it a good clean and maybe stitch it up again but he didn't even look at it. I was surprised that he didn't do that because he seemed thorough with everything before.

He said he couldn't restitch because it would most likely open again and just to rinse it with a shower head  to clean it out. I'm sure he knows what he's talking about but my anxiety goes up when I have a deep hole like that right next to my anus.

When I went this morning I was scared it would hurt a lot (that area still hurts from surgery but thought this would make it worse) but I didn't feel anything from the wound. The other areas I still did but even they weren't that bad. Least painful bm since surgery. Yay! small victories...haha

My question is do you have any other tips for keeping it clean or making it heal faster. After I went this morning, I rinsed it well but when I looked in my small mirror, I could still see some there. Then I took a damp gauze pad and dabbed and that got out some more but I still see a tiny bit and can't get it out. I worry so much about infection.

Comments

  • z
    z Member Posts: 1,414 Member
    #2
    Anabel Lee

    Hello, Sorry for what your going through.  The only thing I would suggest is either a bath, which is time consuming.  Or take a sports bottle after you have eliminated and rinse with that.  I don't know if baby wipes would help, without any perfumes, alcohol of course, or the flushable kind.  I wish you well and hope it will heal quickly.. Lori

  • pializ
    pializ Member Posts: 508 Member
    #3
    z said:

    Anabel Lee

    Hello, Sorry for what your going through.  The only thing I would suggest is either a bath, which is time consuming.  Or take a sports bottle after you have eliminated and rinse with that.  I don't know if baby wipes would help, without any perfumes, alcohol of course, or the flushable kind.  I wish you well and hope it will heal quickly.. Lori

    Clean up

    What about a portable bidet or a sitz bath? I found my bidet invaluable & still use it from time to time.

    Hope you heal soon

    Liz

  • eihtak
    eihtak Member Posts: 1,473 Member
    #4
    Anabel_Lee....

    Your probably doing ok by rinsing really well after you go to the bathroom. I do have a handheld shower head and that would work great, otherwise as suggested a spritz bottle.

    One other thing that may help is to buy something typically used on babies diaper rash like "Desitan" or "A&D" ointment. Once you have dried the area just cover with this ointment and that will help coat it for the next time.

    Be well.....

    katheryn

  • Anabel_Lee
    Anabel_Lee Member Posts: 32
    #5
    eihtak said:

    Anabel_Lee....

    Your probably doing ok by rinsing really well after you go to the bathroom. I do have a handheld shower head and that would work great, otherwise as suggested a spritz bottle.

    One other thing that may help is to buy something typically used on babies diaper rash like "Desitan" or "A&D" ointment. Once you have dried the area just cover with this ointment and that will help coat it for the next time.

    Be well.....

    katheryn

    Oozing

    Thank you ladies for the advice. I'll give the sport bottle a shot since I don't have a hand held shower head.  (and I'll look in to the sitz bath).  That cream might also help since I've noticed with whatever it is that drains out of you after surgery, it was inflamming the whole area and hurt so much. Hurt more than the actual incisions.

    A question about the oozing. I'm still getting some and my surgery was last Friday. When I look with my mirror I can see a clear trickling liquid coming out of one of the areas. And when I dab to clean it, it looks a pale yellow. Does anyone know how long this lasts? I hate the feeling of moisture down there and this stuff makes my butt cheeks stick together if it's on there long enough.

    Any opinions on if I should keep the wound covered or not? I keep thinking it should be covered because it's deep but the doctor just seemed to shrug it off when I asked.

    Still really surprised by that. The couple times I'd been around him before, he seemed so thorough and attentive. Yesterday, he acted like I was keeping him from his golf game. I was the last person he saw (the office was completely empty except for the receptionist, so I guess he just wanted to leave. I would have thought he'd at least like to see how I'm healing up.

  • qv62
    qv62 Member Posts: 434 Member
    #6
    Anabel_Lee said:

    Oozing

    Thank you ladies for the advice. I'll give the sport bottle a shot since I don't have a hand held shower head.  (and I'll look in to the sitz bath).  That cream might also help since I've noticed with whatever it is that drains out of you after surgery, it was inflamming the whole area and hurt so much. Hurt more than the actual incisions.

    A question about the oozing. I'm still getting some and my surgery was last Friday. When I look with my mirror I can see a clear trickling liquid coming out of one of the areas. And when I dab to clean it, it looks a pale yellow. Does anyone know how long this lasts? I hate the feeling of moisture down there and this stuff makes my butt cheeks stick together if it's on there long enough.

    Any opinions on if I should keep the wound covered or not? I keep thinking it should be covered because it's deep but the doctor just seemed to shrug it off when I asked.

    Still really surprised by that. The couple times I'd been around him before, he seemed so thorough and attentive. Yesterday, he acted like I was keeping him from his golf game. I was the last person he saw (the office was completely empty except for the receptionist, so I guess he just wanted to leave. I would have thought he'd at least like to see how I'm healing up.

    Anabel_Lee

    I would use the gauze when I was out and about to keep the drainage off my good skin to avoid irritation but while at home I would take some time to air dry the wound with nothing on it, I found this helpful but couldn't live without a hand held shower and a sitz bath. I got my sitz at the hospital, it doesn't hurt to ask your doctor for the sitz and the gauze, if they have it they will just give it to you. On your next visit tell him you would like him to look at the wound, I can't imagine he wouldn't want to make sure you are healing, hope you are getting better everyday.

  • pem
    pem Member Posts: 81 Member
    #7
    qv62 said:

    Anabel_Lee

    I would use the gauze when I was out and about to keep the drainage off my good skin to avoid irritation but while at home I would take some time to air dry the wound with nothing on it, I found this helpful but couldn't live without a hand held shower and a sitz bath. I got my sitz at the hospital, it doesn't hurt to ask your doctor for the sitz and the gauze, if they have it they will just give it to you. On your next visit tell him you would like him to look at the wound, I can't imagine he wouldn't want to make sure you are healing, hope you are getting better everyday.

    keeping the wound clean

    hello anabel_Lee,     I too had a sergical  area in my anal/outer area open up between my cheeks close to anal opening.  there are not much on this site that had it removed sergically before treatment.  im surprised your dr didnt have you coming in to get it packed on a daily basis.  i had a nurse coming to my house twice a day to change it.  if you have partner to help you then you can pack it easily yourselves while at home.  you can buy some packing strips (thinner ones), some saline that you can squirt, and some larger square guaze. make sure hands are very clean when doing this.  this is what i had done and it worked for me.  squirt the area with the saline first and dab dry with the guaze.  then cut some tape with clean sissors and sqirt some saline on it and squeeze it out best you could and then lay the packing strips side by side in the hole best you can using tweezers (carefully).you can use the tweezer to unroll it over the wound without touching and infecting it with germs.  If you have two tweezers you can grap one end of the packing tape after you soaked with the saline  and use the other one to wrap it aroung the other tweezer while pulling tight to get most the saline off.  when packing, it may only take very little and maybe just two lines or one.  either way just lay it down in one layer to cover whole area.  this stuff will suck all that yellow stuff you saw out of the wound and help it heal faster with less chance of infection. apparently this helps it heal from the inside out so an abscess doesnt form and healthy tissue can grow, from the inside out. less scar tissue too once healed. if you notice it looks bright red, thats a good thing cause it is healthy tissue. once you have that in place then take a square guaze and fold in half and place it tight towards your anal area and your cheeks will keep it in place until you sit on toilet and it usually falls out.  if by chance you dont have someone to help then the next best thing is just cleanting it very well then squirting it with saline best you can and folding a  dry guaze and putting it tight near anal area.  that is what i did if my packing fell out before the nurse came.  it didnt stick or anything to the area because that yelllow ooze always came out.  once you notice that less ooze is coming out if you do choose to use packing tape then just switch to using just the guaze. you should also notice the hole becoming less deep and level with the outer area. mine healed pretty quick once the packing was stopped and was less ooze in it.  when mine opened , i too was very surprised that it didnt hurt  much other then if i sat too long on it, it would just throb a bit.  but really no pain.  hope this helps and good luck!!  this is the first time i was able to offer some advice from my own experiance and i am happy to do it cause everyone on this site has always been there for me when i neede it and am forever greatful!!  god bless you..  pem

    ps usually before i got it packed i would have a sitz bath and really splash the water hard against the open wound.  this always worked to get every particle out. 

     pss  this is just my  experiance, i am not a dr by any means. 

  • mxperry220
    mxperry220 Member Posts: 496 Member
    #8
    Sanitary Pad

    I lined my underwear with a sanitary "light days" sanitary pad.  This helped absorb  the mucous leakage.  I wore briefs rather than boxers during this time.

    Mike 

  • Anabel_Lee
    Anabel_Lee Member Posts: 32
    #9
    mxperry220 said:

    Sanitary Pad

    I lined my underwear with a sanitary "light days" sanitary pad.  This helped absorb  the mucous leakage.  I wore briefs rather than boxers during this time.

    Mike 

    Great advice

    From all of you. Thanks so much!

    How long does this drainage last? I had my surgery last friday and it isn't getting any better. I hate walking around with swamp **** all day. I'm becoming obsessed with looking at the area and dabbing it, etc.

    I could be doing so many more fun things with my time.

  • mxperry220
    mxperry220 Member Posts: 496 Member
    #10
    Anabel_Lee said:

    Great advice

    From all of you. Thanks so much!

    How long does this drainage last? I had my surgery last friday and it isn't getting any better. I hate walking around with swamp **** all day. I'm becoming obsessed with looking at the area and dabbing it, etc.

    I could be doing so many more fun things with my time.

    Leakage

    It has been 5 plus years since my final radiation treatment but it seems like the major leakage lastest  about 6 weeks after treatment.  I still have some fecal leakage occasionally where I am having to use toilet tissue to clean up.  I think my spincter muscle was affected during treatment.  This is not a chroinic issue but does happen on occasion.

    Mike

  • Lorikat
    Lorikat Member Posts: 681 Member
    #11
    mxperry220 said:

    Leakage

    It has been 5 plus years since my final radiation treatment but it seems like the major leakage lastest  about 6 weeks after treatment.  I still have some fecal leakage occasionally where I am having to use toilet tissue to clean up.  I think my spincter muscle was affected during treatment.  This is not a chroinic issue but does happen on occasion.

    Mike

    Me too Mike. just the way it

    Me too Mike. just the way it is.  Lori

     

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