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SURGICAL BANDAGE/INCISION CARE

For typical skin closure, Dr. Eccles and his team will place stitches or sutures
under your skin. The sutures will dissolve on their own over time, and nothing
needs to be removed.

When you leave the surgical center, you will typically have an antimicrobial
bandage on your incision that we may refer to a “dressing.” We typically wrap
a stretchy, tan Ace-Bandage which can be removed and thrown away before
your first shower and doesn’t need to be reapplied.

Unless otherwise instructed, leave the underlying dressing on for 2 weeks!
Dr. Eccles or his staff will remove it during your first follow-up visit. It was put
on in a sterile environment in the OR and will keep your incision clean.

• Some minor dressing saturation with bloody drainage can be
completely normal. If it is larger than a quarter size or is reaching
the edges, notify Dr. Eccles’ office.

THE FIRST 2 WEEKS AFTER SURGERY
• Your dressing is water-resistant. Unless Dr. Eccles tells you otherwise, you can shower normally and pat the
dressing dry afterward.
• Notify Dr. Eccles’ office immediately if water has gotten inside the dressing.
• Your joint and skin will feel full, may have some surrounding redness, and will be warm as the body sends
blood to the area to aid healing.

FROM 2 TO 6 WEEKS AFTER SURGERY
• Your joint will still feel full, stiff, and warm. THIS IS COMPLETELY NORMAL.
• Once the dressing is removed at your first postoperative visit, leave the incision uncovered and open to the air.
In general, JUST LEAVE IT ALONE! Your body knows how to heal.
• Refrain from picking at any small scabs that may form.
• Shower normally. Allow soapy water to run over your incision but do not scrub.
• Pat the incision dry with a clean towel.
• Avoid submerging your incision in a bath, pool, or hot tub for at least six weeks after surgery.
• Do not apply ointments, creams, powder, oils, or lotions to your incision until instructed.
• It is very common to have lumps and bumps along the incisional area. Your body will dissolve the underlying
stitches over time, and everything will flatten out.
• Sometimes, your body will try to “spit out” a stitch before it absorbs it. It is a race between your body dissolving
them and your body recognizing that they are foreign objects it wants to try to eliminate. A spit stitch can look
like a small pimple, have some surrounding redness, and can even drain a small amount of yellowish fluid. Let
us know if this happens and we may have you send us a picture or be seen earlier than expected. If you see the
end of the stitch, you can clean a pair of tweezers with alcohol and gently pull the stitch remnant out. Usually,
this is a tiny and extremely short white string that can be removed and then the area heals.

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