Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 4: How to Safely Shower After Surgery
• Part 2 of 4: How to keep your incision dry
• Part 3 of 4: How to Prevent Inflammation
• Part 4 of 4: Cases requiring medical attention

Routine daily activities may well become difficult and futile, especially during the recovery period from surgery, and taking a bath or shower is no exception. As in most cases the sutures should be kept dry, shower only as directed by your doctor. These guidelines may include waiting a while before you can shower, or carefully protecting the surgical suture from water while bathing, or both. Depending on the specific type of surgery, normal bathing can be difficult due to limited mobility, and it can be difficult to move around in a confined shower space. This article will help you organize your bath or shower in a safe way to prevent inflammation and additional injury.

Steps

Part 1 of 4: How to Safely Shower After Surgery

1. 1 Follow the directions for bathing or showering your surgeon gave you. The doctor will know exactly how serious your operation was and what steps should be taken to further the recovery process.
   • Your doctor will be sure to give you clear instructions on how to behave in the first few days after surgery, including advice on when to safely start swimming and showering. The doctor's prescription will largely depend on the type of surgery performed and the method used to close the wound after surgery.
   • Bathing and showering instructions must be given to you at the time you are discharged from the hospital.Contact your doctor immediately if you lose or forget this information to prevent inflammation of the wound and new injuries, and to recover safely from surgery.
2. 2 Find out how you got your stitches. Knowing how you got your stitches will help prevent injury and inflammation.
   • The four most common surgical techniques for wound closure are suture suture, surgical stapler, sterile surgical tape, and medical glue.
   • In some cases, surgeons may place a waterproof dressing over the seam to allow you to shower when you are ready.
   • If the wound was closed with medical glue, then in most cases, a day after the operation, it is considered acceptable to take a shower with a weak pressure of water.
   • Also, there may be sutures on the wound, imposed with threads, which are removed after the wound heals or dissolve on their own without the subsequent need to remove them.
   • Caring for a postoperative wound that has been sutured with threads that require subsequent removal, staples or plaster may require keeping it dry for a longer time. In this case, bathing will be limited to rubbing with a sponge or special protection of the seam from water while taking a shower.
3. 3 Gently wash the area around the seam. If the seam does not need additional protection from water, try not to rub it with a washcloth.
   • Wash the area around the seam with liquid soap and water, but do not let bath products get on the seam. Then, gently rinse the area with clean water.
   • In most cases, surgeons recommend using regular soap and hair care products after surgery.
4. 4 Dry the wound area gently. After showering, remove any protective dressing that may have been present on the wound (for example, a gauze pad and regular but not surgical tape), and dry the area around the wound.
   • Gently blot the area with a clean towel or gauze pad.
   • Do not rub or remove any visible stitches, staples, or surgical tape that are still in place.
   • Do not pick at the wound; leave the scabs alone until they naturally fall off on their own, as they prevent bleeding.
5. 5 Treat the seam only with the creams and ointments prescribed by your doctor. Avoid using topical suture treatments unless prescribed by your surgeon.
   • Changing the dressing as directed by your doctor may require topical treatments. You may have been advised of antibiotic creams and ointments as part of your dressing change procedure, but only use them if you have been prescribed them.
6. 6 Do not touch the surgical tape covering the wound. At the end of the period when the wound needs to be kept dry, the surgical patch can already be wetted, however, it must not be removed until it falls off by itself.
   • After bathing, gently pat the seam area dry, including the surgical patch if it is still in place.

Part 2 of 4: How to keep your incision dry

1. 1 Keep the seam area dry if directed by your doctor. Keeping the wound dry (or avoiding bathing and showering for 24 to 72 hours after surgery) is believed to help prevent inflammation and promote healing.
   • Follow your doctor's instructions. There are many factors associated with a particular operation, and the risk of wound inflammation or suture damage can be avoided by following your doctor's instructions.
   • Keep gauze pads handy so that you can dab the wound with them throughout the day, even if you haven't wet, if necessary.
2. 2 Cover the wound with a water-repellent bandage. Depending on your surgeon's specific instructions, if your incision is in a location where it can be carefully protected with waterproof material, your doctor may allow you to shower when you are ready.
   • In most cases, the surgeon will give clear instructions on how to protect the wound while showering.
   • Use a plastic bag, trash bag, or cling film to cover the wound completely. Place plastic tape around the edges to prevent water from getting under the protective bandage.
   • If the incision is hard to reach, have a friend or family member cut the plastic and use the tape to protect the wound.
   • In the case of wounds on the shoulders and upper back, in addition to the protective bandage on the wound itself, it will not hurt to throw a garbage bag (like a cape) over the shoulders so that water, soap or shampoo does not get onto the wound area during the shower. If the seam is in the chest area, tie a garbage bag like a baby bib.
3. 3 Use a sponge to wipe down. Until you are allowed to shower, you can freshen up your body by rubbing it with a sponge, while keeping the area of ​​the postoperative wound dry and not touching it.
   • For rubdowns, use a sponge dipped in water and a small amount of liquid soap. Dry with a clean towel.
4. 4 Refrain from taking baths. Most surgeons recommend taking a shower only when the time has passed to strictly keep the wound dry and you yourself are ready for this procedure.
   • Do not wet the wound, immerse yourself in a water-filled bath, take hot baths, or swim for at least three weeks or until your doctor permits you to do so.
5. 5 Take a short shower. Surgeons generally recommend only taking a five-minute shower until you get stronger and the wound begins to heal.
6. 6 Take care of your own stability. The first few times you shower, you must have someone else with you.
   • Depending on the type of surgery you have undergone in the shower, you may need a stool, chair, or handrails to provide stability and prevent falls.
   • If you have had surgery on your knees, hips, ankles, feet or back, it will be difficult for you to balance in the small space of the shower; for extra support, use stools, chairs, or handrails.
7. 7 The stream of water should not touch the wound. Avoid putting strong streams of water directly onto the wound.
   • Adjust the water to a comfortable temperature and flow to protect your wound before showering.

Part 3 of 4: How to Prevent Inflammation

1. 1 Learn to recognize the symptoms of inflammation. Inflammation is the most common complication after surgery.
   • See your doctor right away if you think the wound is beginning to become inflamed.
   • Symptoms of inflammation include an increase in temperature above 38 ° C, nausea, vomiting, severe pain, increased redness and swelling in the area of ​​the postoperative suture, its sensitivity, a local increase in the temperature of the wound, the presence of discharge from it with an unpleasant odor or discharge of yellow or green color.
   • According to statistics, postoperative complications account for about 10% of cases, with 80% of them being inflammatory complications. Unfortunately, in some cases, patients die from infectious complications after surgery.
2. 2 Find out if you are at increased risk for inflammatory complications. Under certain circumstances and situations, some people are more likely to develop inflammation or open a wound than others.
   • Risk factors include obesity, diabetes, weakened immunity, poor diet, corticosteroid use, and smoking.
3. 3 Take precautions about basic hygiene. Common measures you can take at home include washing your hands thoroughly, changing clothes often when dressing is changed, and using a clean towel to dry your skin after showering.
   • Be sure to wash your hands after using the toilet, contact with trash, pets, dirty laundry when washing, after touching outdoor objects and soiled dressings removed from your wound.
   • As a precaution, ask family members and guests to wash their hands before contacting the person who has had surgery.
   • Stop smoking at least two weeks before surgery (if possible), but it is preferable to do this even four to six weeks. Smoking slows down the healing process of tissues, depriving them of oxygen and potentially contributing to the development of inflammation.

Part 4 of 4: Cases requiring medical attention

1. 1 Call an ambulance if you have a fever. A slightly elevated temperature is not uncommon after surgery, but a fever above 38 ° C may indicate inflammation.
   • Other signs of inflammation that also require immediate medical attention include an increase in redness and swelling around the seam, the appearance of pus, discharge with an unpleasant odor or strangely colored discharge, an increase in wound sensitivity and local temperature in this area.
2. 2 Call an ambulance if bleeding occurs. Wash your hands thoroughly and gently squeeze the wound with clean gauze pads or towels. Call an ambulance immediately.
   • Do not press hard on the wound. Apply moderate pressure to the wound through clean, dry gauze until an ambulance arrives or your doctor examines the wound.
3. 3 See your doctor if you develop any unusual symptoms. If you experience abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, or jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes), see your doctor as soon as possible.
   • It is also wise to call an ambulance if you experience any of the following symptoms of blood clot formation: pallor, cold extremities, chest pain, shortness of breath, unusual swelling of an arm or leg.