DO NOT drive until your drain has been removed, unless otherwise advised by your doctor/surgeon. Keep the drain collection tube anchored to your clothing to prevent it from being pulled out. Keep the drain in your pocket or a shoulder bag when you are moving around. Keep the drain site dressing clean and dry at all ...
Pain and burning sensation can be normal after taking the drains out. This can last for one or two days, if this last longer please get an evaluation for your surgeon .
Answer: Going Back to Work with Drains In
There is NO reason why you could not go back to a desk job with your drains still in. There is no downside in doing so.
How Long Does It Take for a Drain Hole to Heal? The drainage hole is about as wide as a pencil. The hole will close in a few days and fully heal in three to four weeks.
You may have a tube or drain placed in the surgical site to remove excess fluid or blood. The drained fluid is collected into a dressing, bag, or container. You should see the drainage decrease after you go home, and you may see it change color.
Place a dry dressing over the site where the drain was removed. Some drainage from the site commonly occurs until the wound heals.
The drainage has no odor. There is only a very small amount of bleeding. Pain, swelling, and redness are improving.
You may shower after you have had the drain in place for 48 hours, after you have removed your outer surgical dressing (if you have one), or if you do not have an outer dressing. – To keep your drain in place in the shower, attach it to a lanyard or shoelace looped loosely around your neck.
Incision and drainage (I&D), also known as clinical lancing, are minor surgical procedures to release pus or pressure built up under the skin, such as from an abscess, boil, or infected paranasal sinus.
In the days and weeks after surgery your body needs time to repair the incision. During this time, the incision will likely become inflamed and there may be some drainage. A mild amount of drainage from the incision is normal.
Answer: Not necessary to stitch close drain incisions
It isn't necessary to stitch close the incisions where the drains are inserted because they are very small and heal well on their own.
How long does incision and drainage take to heal? After an abscess has been treated it can typically take about 2-3 weeks to completely heal, but most people can return to normal activities after a few days.
The wound will take about 1 to 2 weeks to heal, depending on the size of the abscess. Healthy tissue will grow from the bottom and sides of the opening until it seals over.
If an abscess is small, antibiotics may work but will not be effective in most cases. Sometimes draining the pus with a needle can help but the pus may come back.
Empty the reservoir at least two times a day, even if it's not full. You may need to empty it more than twice if it gets full. Change the dressing around the wound at least once a day, or more often if it becomes soaked or dirty. “Milk” the tubing every four hours while you are awake.
Hemorrhagic drainage
If the blood is dark red and steadily flowing, it may mean a vein has ruptured.
Serous drainage is composed mainly of plasma. It is often thin and watery and will usually have a clear to yellowish or brownish appearance. Small amounts of serous drainage are normal during the first stages of healing.
The color of the fluid usually begins as cranberry (blood tinged) and as the days after surgery go by, the color becomes pink or yellow. The more active you are, the more fluid will be produced. Sometimes increased activity can cause the color of the fluid to become cranberry after it has been yellow.
As with the incision and drainage procedure for skin abscesses, percutaneous drainage may leave a small scar.
Post removal
Dressing should be removed when wound has healed (3-5 days).
The reason for leaving the drain tubes in is to decrease ti chance of fluid collection (seroma). However, leaving the tubes in too long can increase the chance of infection at the tune sites and potentially into deeper space.
Purulent drainage is a sign of infection. It's a white, yellow, or brown fluid and might be slightly thick in texture.
Your skin is very red where the tube comes out (a small amount of redness is normal). There is drainage from the skin around the tube site. There is more tenderness and swelling at the drain site. The drainage is cloudy or has a bad odor.