Bilateral TKR Opening in my scar 5 months PO

[sweetbee]

Hello
I had bilateral TKR in October and things have been quite uneventful until recently when part of my scar opened up. I have always been slow to heal so I wasn’t too concerned. I just kept it clean and covered for the most part. I just figured it was another stitch my body was trying to reject. This morning I noticed two faint red lines coming from the opening. While getting ready to clean it again, I noticed the lines are much darker. Has anyone else experienced anything like this before? I’m on vacation in Mexico so I’m not quite sure what to do.

 

[sistersinhim]

Hello, @sweetbee. Welcome to Bonesmart. I'm sorry you are having this problem with your knee. Which knee is it?

I think you should call your doctor and send him a photo. We have no way of advising you since we don't know your history. After you talk to your doctor, please let us know what he/she says.

I see you had a bilateral TKR. Please tell us more about your knees' histories. This is your Recovery Thread and your replies and updates with be here.

 

[Pumpkin]

I agree, call your surgeon in the morning and send them the photo of the opening. Your surgeon will be able to advise you what to do until you return home.

 

[Jamie]

How much longer will you be in Mexico? Hopefully you'll be heading home soon. The opening of a healed incision as you describe and show in the photo plus those red lines you see could indicate a problem that needs attention right away, such as an infection. Be sure you are not submerging your knee in any water (baths, spas, pools, or the ocean) until you find out what is going on and the open area closes and heals.

Is there any drainage from the opening? If so, what does it look like (color, thick or thin, constant or sporadic, etc.)?

If you cannot get back home to your doctor (or hear from him quickly), are you near a large city where you could go to a local hospital?

 

[sweetbee]

Hello, @sweetbee. Welcome to Bonesmart. I'm sorry you are having this problem with your knee. Which knee is it?

I think you should call your doctor and send him a photo. We have no way of advising you since we don't know your history. After you talk to your doctor, please let us know what he/she says.

I see you had a bilateral TKR. Please tell us more about your knees' histories. This is your Recovery Thread and your replies and updates with be here.

Thank you. I suspected that a call to my surgeon was what I needed to do. Luckily it’s only my right knee. I had an issue with spitting a stitch on my left knee but with extra attention, it cleared up just fine.

I wish I had been writing about my recovery all along. I always thought I’d remember it but honestly, it’s just a blur. I’ll try to organize what I remember because I know reading other’s recovery stories has helped me so much.

 

[sweetbee]

I agree, call your surgeon in the morning and send them the photo of the opening. Your surgeon will be able to advise you what to do until you return home.

Thank you. I think he’s going to be surprised to hear from me 5 months after surgery. I have a feeling this doesn’t happen too often.

 

[sweetbee]

How much longer will you be in Mexico? Hopefully you'll be heading home soon. The opening of a healed incision as you describe and show in the photo plus those red lines you see could indicate a problem that needs attention right away, such as an infection. Be sure you are not submerging your knee in any water (baths, spas, pools, or the ocean) until you find out what is going on and the open area closes and heals.

Is there any drainage from the opening? If so, what does it look like (color, thick or thin, constant or sporadic, etc.)?

If you cannot get back home to your doctor (or hear from him quickly), are you near a large city where you could go to a local hospital?

Well…we were supposed to be heading back on the 21st but decided on Thursday (before the knee started looking angry) to stay until Saturday. About an hour ago I tested positive for Covid (yikes!) so now I’m not sure when I can get back.
I’m in Playa del Carmen and there’s a hospital quite close by but covid has really thrown a big monkey wrench into things. So far there hasn’t been any drainage. It bubbles when I put peroxide on it so I’m sure there’s some sort of infection going on. The red lines haven’t gotten and bigger so that’s good. I will definitely check in with the surgeon in the morning and let you know what he says.

 

[Jamie]

Gee, just what you needed....Covid! So sorry. Given that new wrinkle, your best bet is probably to try and contact your surgeon if that's at all possible. Good luck! Keep an eye on those red lines. You may need to get started on an antibiotic before you head home. Do you have to do Covid tests before flying?

 

[WFD]

Canada no longer requires Covid tests or proof of vaccination to get back in. I checked this out yesterday because my wife and daughter are driving up to Quebec for a spring break holiday as I write this.

 

[Pumpkin]

Hope you were able to get a call into your surgeon for recommendations this morning. Positive thoughts for an uneventful recovery from Covid.
Take good care and keep us posted on how you are doing.
Chris

 

[sweetbee]

Well, this is embarrassing
This morning the lines were gone and I’m pretty sure I know what caused them. It had to have been some kind of reaction to the new bandaids I used. The lines matched up perfectly!! LOL

I wasn’t able to reach the Dr but left a message.
Thanks so much for the well wishes as I recover from covid in the beautiful sunshine. There could be worse places to recover I guess

 

[Jamie]

That's good to hear. But keep a watch on it anyway and be careful since it is an open wound. If it's not closing up by the time you get back home, go see your doctor anyway just to be sure it's nothing to be concerned about. Scars don't usually just open up like that this far out from surgery.