Did anyone have their stitches rip open?

Jerseygirl16 · January 2010

I had a very fast (3 1/2 hours from first contraction to delivery of DS) vaginal delivery and wound up with a first degree tear and 2 labial lacerations. The MW stitched all three wounds after delivery. The labial tear on one side was larger than the other and I fussed a lot during the repair because he decided not to use too many shots of local and I felt the repair being done. He said that if he numbed it totally it would have required a lot of injections and there would have been a lot of swelling and pain after so he thought it was better to cause me a little pain then and have it heal fast.

I can't take motrin because it flares up my ulcerative colitis so I took 1 percoset about every 4 hours while in the hospital. The sites hurt a lot the first few times I peed (as he warned they would) but by the time I left the hospital Thursday morning it was feeling much better.

By Thursday night however the one labial tear that was the worst had started to hurt again. The other two areas are healing nicely but this one spot is very sore. Everytime I pee it burns so bad I am almost in tears and for about a half hour after walking and getting up and down are practically unbearable. After that it's just achy and sore again until the next time I pee. I don't know if it has always hurt this badly and the percoset did a good job of helping the pain ( I am only on Tylenol since leaving the hospital) or if something changed after I got home.

Yesterday I decided to grab a mirror and check things out. The site that hurts appears to be just an open wound. It's about an inch long slit and I can't see where any stitches are ... just open wound. It's not bleeding at all though and does not appear swollen or infected in any way.

So, I'm guessing my stitches opened up either in the hospital and it was masked by pain relief or after I got home. I'm going to call the office tomorrow and see if they can take a look at it but I was wondering if anyone else has been through this. As of Wednesday my husband goes back to work and I'm on my own with our 3 1/2 year old, 21 month old, and new baby so I need to be able to get up and down more often than I have to with him here.

TIA!!

firsttogo · January 2010

I had my tear rip open again. I did end up needing to have it re-repaired. It had a hematoma behind it, and was not pleasant. I went to the ER, and the re-stitching was worse than delivery!

I would insist on being seen. My OB's office kind of blew me off when I called, and I wish I would have been more insistant.

bubu · January 2010

I had a 3rd degree tear that opened up the day after I got home on a Sat. I went back to my ob on Mon and she just told me to spray the shower head nozzle on the wound for 5-10 min 4 times a day which was hard to do with a newborn and a 3 year old needing my attention but I had to be selfish and do it. Somehow after it looked healed it has reopened and is getting worse so I will talk to the dr when I go see her this week for a pap. I was taking Motrin for the pain and you could tell when it kicked in because I was walking and bending much better. I'm not sure if I'd want to be re stitched though, I was sliding away from the ob when she was just looking at it because it was so painful.

Jessalicious01 · January 2010

firsttogo:
I had my tear rip open again. I did end up needing to have it re-repaired. It had a hematoma behind it, and was not pleasant. I went to the ER, and the re-stitching was worse than delivery!
I would insist on being seen. My OB's office kind of blew me off when I called, and I wish I would have been more insistant.

THIS!!! Except it was my c-section incision that it happened too!! The worst pain of my life going in, having the OB pull huge clots out of my incision site and pack it with saline soaked gauze. Then DH had to do it twice/day until it finally healed.

My OB thought it was nothing when I called and said my incision was bleeding. She didn't realize just how much it was bleeding, it was a huge gush of blood. I called her back again 5 minutes later when it happened a 2nd time and she finally told me to go in.

Jerseygirl16 · January 2010

OMG..I can't even imagine it happening with a c-section incision. You poor thing!! Thank goodness they finally brought you in.

I am going to insist on being seen either tomorrow afternoon or sometime Tuesday. I really want someone to look at it and be sure that what I think happened is what happened and that it's not infected and I somehow missed that. I may also ask for a small amount of percoset to get me through the really bad times since I can't take motrin and Tylenol doesn't really do much at at all to take any of the edge off. I'd like a low dose so I'm still alert and able to function and take care of the kids but am able to stand and walk around during the day when it gets especially painful.

I am not sure if I am hoping they restitch it or not. I am worried about infection so for that reason I'd lean towards it but the idea of anyone touching it at all is enough to make me cling to the ceiling.

Jessalicious01 · January 2010

yeah definitelty get more pain meds. You deserve a little comfort!

shopgirl78 · January 2010

I did with my DD and a 4th degree tear which had to be "packed" several times a week in my OBs office for a couple of weeks, then weekly and finally it healed at 4 months pp. You might contact your OB.

umbcpt · January 2010

With DS, my stitches came open two weeks pp and I had to have them restitched. I couldn't see what was wrong down there, but it stung just as you described and DH looked (much to my horror) and said I needed to call. My OB saw me right away (like told me to come as soon as I hung up) and I got restitched. It was worse than delivery. I would also ask for a prescription for Percocet. My tear was also a labial tear, that went forward and to the right, and EVERY little movement caused friction there and I was in agony without the percocet. It still doesn't look the same, but I guess after childbirth it never will. I had a c/s this time, and although a whole different animal in terms of pain, I did not miss the sting from urination. Good luck to you.

ees96 · January 2010

THIS!!! Except it was my c-section incision that it happened too!! The worst pain of my life going in, having the OB pull huge clots out of my incision site and pack it with saline soaked gauze. Then DH had to do it twice/day until it finally healed.

My OB thought it was nothing when I called and said my incision was bleeding. She didn't realize just how much it was bleeding, it was a huge gush of blood. I called her back again 5 minutes later when it happened a 2nd time and she finally told me to go in.

This happened to me too. In the middle of the night at not quite 2 wks PP I noticed a lot of blood. It soaked my pajama pants. DH got the bleeding stopped and I called the OB in the morning. She thought it was just draining...nope! I went in a few hours later and had clots pulled out. I had a home health nurse come and pack the open site once a day. It drained for a lot for at least another week. Then I developed a yeast infection. When that happened, the OB had DH learn how to change the dressings. He did it 3X a day until it closed. I was also put on an antibiotic for 12 days. It was very painful...way more so than the rest of the recovery! And gross.
As PP said, I would insist on being seen by someone. Good luck.

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