TE TROUBLE
Comments
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AnnAlive, good to hear from you! Can't believe you still have a drain! My PS said it is a delicate balance between leaving it in longer (which he told me this morning he would have liked to do) but b/c having the drain presents a way for bacteria to get into the body, he wanted to close that door, so to speak. I am glad you don't have MRSA. I'm sorry your culture shows diphtheroids...at least there is a reason for your troubles! BTW, what do you mean when you say you developed a pink spot over the beginning (not the exit) of your drain? I only had an exit for my drain. I'm confused!
This AM my PS removed the steristrips and there are 2 areas on the incision line that are not yet healed (I am 13 days post surgery). He said there is some seroma built up, which is to be expected given my drain came out on day 8. I don't see him again until Jan. 3. If I still have seroma (and my incision is healed), he will remove the accumulated fluid and then give me a fill to keep the size. But we are hoping the seroma will stay manageable and we don't have to do anything until we start fills in Februar, provided all heals as it should.
In the meantime, I am going to take pictures of myself every day so I can monitor any changes easily (and can send him a JPeg if I am worried about anything). PS also told me that now was *not* the time to restict my calories, that I should be focused on good, healthy eating for healing and that I could walk and do anything except lift weights or raise my arm above my head. (I have already done the latter many times getting dressed, Ineed to stop doing that!).
Momof3 how are you doing? Any news on the PS front?
Tatina and JBennett, hanging in there?
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Renn...still have the drain, but I think today the output is considerably going down. I hope today will be the first day that I'm at 30cc's. I have an appt Friday to hopefully get this thing out and to possibly start expanding. My PS starts right away to push any seroma fluid out from around the TE. The only discomfort I'm having is a little tugging from the drain when I move a certain way. I'm probably moving more and more everyday and need to relax a little. It's so hard when there are 3 boys going in different directions. Not much time to rest.
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Renn - thanks for asking about me. I am doing okay but I am so paranoid that I will get a cold or something before my surgery and they won't do it. My son brought his girlfriend over the other night and she was sniffling. I wiped everything down with Clorox wipes as soon as she left! Also still doing the cleaning thing. Found myself standing on my kitchen table yesterday wiping down the chandalier!
Sounds like you are doing well. I think my right drain came out too early and I had to have fluid drained at least twice. It was not so bad. Hopefully yours will resolve itself. That's a good idea to take a picture everyday. It will definitely make it easier to monitor. Sometimes its hard to be objective about how they appear. The pics will make a difference.
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Renassus - By the "beginning" of the drain, I mean the inside end of the tubing -- I can see the entire tube encircling on top of my TE (under skin of course), and where it starts is obvious, and that's where the small pink area is. Let me go look -- yeah, still there, only about .5 cm in diameter and perhaps a little redder now. I was thinking it was due to friction of the tube from the inside, but both docs were concerned, also because of my drain output and that C Reactive Protein result being up. My insurance rejected Zyvox antibiotic, so I am now on Bactrim DS for 2 weeks. I questioned it because that's one of two I was on leading up to the surgery 3 weeks ago, and the infection wouldn't go away. But I also considered maybe the diphteroids are dead now and some other organism was introduced during the TE replacement. Yikes. Or maybe even during the 2 fills I've had since surgery. Lefty 380cc hasn't caught up with Righty 420cc, and Lefty's the one that needs overfill before radiation. But if I can't get rid of the infection, Lefty will be removed!
Renassus - Sorry to hear about your bothersome seroma. Wouldn't it be nice if it reduced on its own before your Jan 3 visit?
Momof3 - Good to hear your drainage is going down now. May it continue! That must be a squishy feeling when your PS pushes the seroma fluid around. Haven't experienced a seroma, but I think my drain's coming out Thursday and hope to be past one developing.
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Ladies- I would like to pick your brains as you all unfortunately have more experience with this....
I have a friend who has had exchange to implants early in October but is having trouble with fluid oozing out of the incision and this is what she said about her PS appt today:
"Well, that appt was a smashing good time! He peeled off the skin glue from surgery and the gunk that was there and that exposed a nice little black hole! Yes, I said a black hole. That drained some so he hopes that will allow the infection to heal. He's not sure what it is. Yes, I said he is not sure what it is. I asked "Well, who does?" and he said "None of us, we've never seen this persistance on a scar line before". He says to stay on the bactrim, put bacitracin on it 2x a day and call if it gets worse or I develop a fever and he will see me next week."
Any thoughts or suggestions?
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Ren - Hanging in there....counting the days.....Keep us posted on the seroma buildup, okay?
Momof3- I hope your drain comes out real soon!
AnnAlive - I hope you feel better soon. I am so sorry you have had to deal with these infections.
Ginger - I was on Bactrim for my infection after my tissue expander got removed. It sounds as if this doc wants to take one day at a time.....
Take care everyone,
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Hi all
I've been off the boards for a few days so took me awhile to read through all of your posts. Lots going on here.
Chick - glad to hear the implants are doing well and hope the divets, etc settle down. Happy shopping with your DD.
Ren and Momof3 - wishing you both continued healing.
AnnAlive - Not sure if I misunderstood….are you getting fills while you still have a drain in and the Dr is concerned about infection?
Laura - It's too bad you're having to go through chemo at the same time as dealing with TE fills…I'm sure that is not fun!! Sorry to say that in my experience, the more fills you get, the more uncomfortable they become.
Re bras with TEs - I haven't worm a bra for the past year that I've had TEs….the TEs are so rock hard, they don't meld into anything. So I wear nothing under shirts unless it's a lighter/thinner fabric, then I wear a cami to try to hide the weird shape of the TEs.
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Ginger48, is your friend's hole in the incision across one of her implants or in between her implants? I had a hole open up in the incision between my implants & that was not a problem, as it was allowing fluid to drain without putting me in danger of exposing the implants.
Hope all of you ladies with drains get them removed soon!
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Good morning! Had the best night's sleep since surgery. Hopefully my body thinks so too and keeps healing. Yesterday drainage was down to 35cc's, I'm getting there SLOWLY. My nurse said that sometimes (even with drains in) the PS will start fills. When this happens, it pushes the seroma fluid out. I'm thinking it might even be good to keep the drain in for at least that first fill to get the fluid out? Yes I'm so tired of this drain, but after talking to many friends who have been through this or are nurses, 2 weeks is actually pretty normal to have a drain in (I'm at 2 weeks today and see PS on Friday). It's certainly not slowing me down - I'm off to run errands. Walking in the evenings, doing lunges to work lower body in the daytime. Will keep you posted about Friday's appt.
Thinking of you AnnAlive! Put your health first!
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DLL66- thanks for your reply. It is in one of the incisions from having her implant put in.It is radiated skin. Her surgery was over 2 months ago. She found out post surgery that she had MRSA in the summer that someone forgot to put in her chart and so had a very bad infection in the breast pocket post exchange and spent about 5 days in the hospital around Halloween.I guess if they had known about the MRSA at the time they would have put her on very strong antibiotics pre-surgery. The wound just won't heal and the dr has basically said he has no idea why. She is being treated at a community hospital and thinks maybe she should go to a bigger one for a second opinion.She just isn't sure how to go about doing that and who to contact. Do you work with infectious disease, someone in wound care, a PS? I did tell her about eating more protein and about really taking it easy but wondered if anyone had other suggestions.
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momof3- did the dr say it is ok to walk and do lunges? Just wondering because mine told me activity would increase fluid production and to take it easy.I did have drains for 2 weeks.
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Ginger48, that sounds similar to my issues except that I never tested positive for any sort of infection. I have lat flaps on both sides & still have healing problems on my rads side. Twice I had a hole open up on the rads side. I could see the implant (purple, shiny-looking). The first time, my PS removed scar tissue & replaced the implant. The second time, he removed the implant & we are now waiting 6-8 weeks for the rads side to settle down & heal before we try again. I have just been working with my PS through all of this.
In your friend's case, if her PS has no answers, a second opinion might be a good idea.
Momof3, glad to hear that you are feeling good & that drainage is decreasing.
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Ginger48: Your friend needs to get a 2nd opinion pronto. What you are describing could be the implant showing through (if that's what it is, it needs to be taken care of immediately). If it's *not* the implant, it could be necrosis... which appears as a dark spot. That too is serious. That is how my TE Troubles began. I developed a necrotic spot on my incision line. I had to go in for emergency surgery to have it debrided and resutured. PS said once he got in there, he found necrosis *under* my incision line too. So he was glad he went in there immediately to remove it. Please tell your friend to get a second opinion ASAP. If her PS truly has "no idea" what this is (did he culture the fluid he removed?), she *has* to go to someone else. An infectious disease doc would be able to help by putting her on the proper antibiotics, but they are going to have to wait for the fluid culture to come back to tell them what they are dealing with. She needs to line up another PS, in a bigger area, ASAP. She also should start taking daily close-up photos of her incision line (use the macro setting on her camera to get clear images) so she can tell if it is getting worse. She can also email JPegs of these images to a new doctor right away!! If you need more help, please PM me.
AnnAlive: Amazing you can see where the beginning of your drain is! I would also suggest you start taking digital images with a camera or phone to treack your healing. That is really the best way to objectively see what is going on from day-to-day.
JBennett: I too was paranoid (still am post-surgery) of the germies. I went to the drive-thru at the pharmacy the other day to limit my exposure to people!
Tatina: less than a week away! Yea!
Momof3: I feel really good too, it is hard to keep a good woman down but we have to take it easy. I have often thought i should put my arm in a sling to remind myself not to use it! I cannot tell I have seroma, but PS can. It's just the fluid buildup. He told me he would remove some and do a fill on Jan 3 if it is still there.
A holiday shout-out to all the other ladies reading!
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Hi ladies - I've been lurking for a while, not much to add - holiday blues on top of struggling with lack of sleep has got me down. I'm happy to report my new left TE is holding up and doing it's job without leaking, so there's a bright spot!
You are all in my thoughts and prayers. Here's hoping for drain removals and infections being reined in, and expanders doing their jobs without creating more heartache for anyone.
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Ginger - yes PS said to get up and get moving and to drink lots of fluids. I think they all have different opinions on just about everything. As long as it's not upper body, it should be OK. I think? I'm just taking light, slow walks in the evening when it's cooler, as it's still 80 degrees in the days here!
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Renn- thanks for the suggestions. I am going to pass them on and will PM you if I have more questions. It is not reassuring to hear a dr say they have no idea what it is and have never seen anything like it and do not refer you somewhere else!
momof3- so jealous of 80 degrees and you are so right that every PS says something different. Glad you got the ok to move around some.
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Also jealous of the 80 degree temp you're still enjoying….how nice.
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It was almost 50 here today...of course it rained all day.
Hope everyone is healing and staying healthy.
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AnnAlive --- you are a soldier. I think you have a higher tolerance level and better patience because you are a nurse.
If I had any red spot at end of my tube line (and yes I could feel mine around my TE and the end) I would ask for an ultrasound to see if there is an infection pocket growing.
If I could see any hole in the incision or the implant itself, I would RUN and not walk to a Medical Surgeon and not a PS. If necessary go to a bigger hospital or University medical center if available.
I'm hanging in here with oral antibiotics. No sign of infection since I checked out of the hospital and the plan is I go on IV antibiotics the morning of the exchange (Dec.22nd). It's definitely One Day at a Time though. Now I've heard that after the exchange I'll have drainage tubes. Does anyone know if it's the same experience as MX or BMX?
I just assumed the healing process for the exchange would be shorter term.
Hang in there Ladies.
Hugs,
Kat
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Hang in there Kat! Sounds like all is stable. Ask your PS if you will have drains. The answer is usually "Maybe." Though a friend of mine just had her exchange yesterday and she woke up to NO drains. So it really depends. Better to go in thinking you'll have them and be thrilled if ya don't. Also, exchange is not as bad as MX or BMX. I have not had the pleasure yet myself, but that's what I hear from all my pals here. I'm sure someone else will come along who has had exchange. PS I added you to our surgery list up top! ;-)
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Kat- the healing from exchange is sooo much easier than MX or BMX. I personally did not have drains but I think some people do and it is not usually for as long. Good luck!
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*If* I ever get to the point of exchange, I'd bet my bottom dollar that I'll have drains lol. Still hanging out with the drain - at about 30cc's now. Wouldn't be surprised if she left it in over the weekend after seeing her tomorrow. It will make me feel better just to see her though. Just to make sure everything looks OK. It feels OK, and incision looks completely closed. Maybe she'll take some stitches out?
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Hello everyone, I'm seven weeks out from my TE replacement and I'm finally starting to be able to sleep on my side for a little bit again! I need to cram a pillow into me when I do but it feels great to be able to do so.
I have had to fills since then and have a total of about 120ccs in it, I'm about half way to finally matching up to the left so they can both be filled together.
I'm having some pains underneath my right armpit. Can't explain it. It doesn't hurt like I need a pain pill for relief but it is there and annoying. I did attempt to do pushups a couple days ago. Not on the ground, I wish I was back at that point. I did them against my desk, they were hard, I did five. I'm thinking maybe I put too much strain on something in there.
I've been perusing through posts this morning. This last surgery my drains were in for about two weeks. I had ALOT of drainage the first week, like the flood gates were open. I finally started to slow down to below 30ccs a couple days before my PS felt comfortable taking them out.
Good luck on the exchanges happening!
I'm supposed to meet up with SpecialK tonight! Very excited!
Michelle :-)
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momof3: let us know what the PS says today!
Mrochon... forget the pushups right now. Your chest muscle is still healing from TE placement! (Some PS's say you can *never* do pushups again.) Call your PS's office, the nurse will be able to tell you if you should be doing them or not. But yes it sounds like you strained the muscle.Yay on getting to meet up with SpecialK! ;-) Have fun for all of us in recoveryland!
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Renn- First 2nd opinion appt my friend could get is on 12/30. Apparently lots of docs are going on vacation for the next 2 weeks. She is still trying...
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I was able to start doing pushups after my BMX and TE removal but this time around the recovery is just taking it's sweet time.
I guess I will stick to stretching for awhile longer.Ginger48, your friend should get her butt to the ER if she can't get an appointment immediately. I read your posts and that's just not something to fool with, as everyone here can attest to. Waiting until the 30th is just too long.
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So cool that you get to meet up with specialK Michelle!
I didn't have drains after exchange.
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Michelle and SpecialK - hope you have a great get together!
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My pain increased when I got my drains out as well. Not for long though. Mostly muscle spasms.
I went in for my first fill today. Couldn't feel the needle through the skin, but a LOT of pressure, and bruising. Now spasms, but that's just part of it.
I told him that it looked like my expander was leaking, and he said maybe just a bit, but it wasn't emptying the TE, so he'll try filling and see what happens. I'm still thinking about a second opinion and going for the DIEP. Still, I have a little cleavage now, and don't feel the fluid from the initial fill moving so much when I bend over.0 -
Have fun mrochon & specialk!
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