I created a different topic to discuss "spitting sutures". It's been a number of years since anyone mentioned them in the FFS area.
About 6 weeks after surgery I had my primary care physician (PCP) remove some permanent sutures I thought the surgeon had missed. Within the next week I had a couple more sutures removed by my local cosmetic surgeon, he told me not to worry, that "spitting sutures" is common. That's when I spent some time internet researching spitting sutures. Wow, I did not realize how common it is for your body to reject sutures. In fact your body can spit out sutures months after surgery. I had another one show up several days ago, instead of going to the Doc to get it removed, it actually came out on it's own yesterday. I have another one showing up along the coronal incision.
Just thought I'd post this in case anyone else going through FFS is unaware of "spitting sutures". Surgeons seem to be pretty nonchalant about them, but if you aren't aware of them they can be concerning.
Since there is recent conversation regarding "spitting sutures" I thought I'd resurrect this old thread.
I have 4 areas along my coronal incision which I believe are where sutures have come to the surface. When I brought them to the attention of my local plastic surgeon 2 months after surgery he thought they were just areas where new hair was growing through the incision. It is now 9 months later and these 4 areas still exist, they feel like very short stubble.
Also, in the left temple area, just within hair line I have something sticking just out of the skin. I had one on the right side too, but a month or so when I was rubbing it, it came loose. These could be from upper face lift? I'm seeing my Primary Care Physician (PCP) in a week to take a closer look at these areas. They are mostly benign, except the one at the top of the incision. If I irritate it to much by touching it I can feel and see a little liquid ( puss ) on my finger. I want to get this resolved so my suture can completely heal.
I also had one on the right side lower cheek, about 6 weeks ago I was trying to rub off what I thought was mud on the right side. Instead of dead, dry skin came off and a very short black thread came was on my finger. Around the same time I had gone into see my dermatologist regarding what I thought was a skin cancer lesion ( I've had a squamous cell lesion removed before ) on my lower left cheek. She did a biopsy, the results came back as non-cancerous, but a foreign object was found. I have an appt scheduled with her later this month so she can investigate further.
I requested an operative report from the surgeon so I can take it with me when I see the dermatologist.
I welcome any one to add comments to this thread. Based upon what I've easily found through Google searches (http://bfy.tw/6Ysa) , example: Seattle Plastic Surgeon blogs about spitting stitches a.k.a stitch abscesses a.k.a. a real pain for both patient and surgeon (http://www.sowdermd.com/blog/stitch-abscesses-a-postoperative-bump-in-the-road/), I can't be the only one who has had "spitting sutures" post FFS and soft tissue surgery.
Yeah Dr Deschamps-Braly mentioned it's a possible thing that happens....he said with his patients / experience it was more uncommon but yeah.
Quote from: Debra on July 07, 2016, 08:08:30 AM
Yeah Dr Deschamps-Braly mentioned it's a possible thing that happens....he said with his patients / experience it was more uncommon but yeah.
Did he bring it up on his own or was it in reply to a question you posed to him? I'm curious because no surgeon I've ever interacted with told me about "spitting sutures". The little stubbly one at my left temple came out yesterday. Looking at it under a magnifying glass it was clear or white, with a tiny knot.
Quote from: deeiche on July 07, 2016, 11:07:45 AM
Did he bring it up on his own or was it in reply to a question you posed to him? I'm curious because no surgeon I've ever interacted with told me about "spitting sutures". The little stubbly one at my left temple came out yesterday. Looking at it under a magnifying glass it was clear or white, with a tiny knot.
Yeah he brought it up. I never asked.
Quote from: Debra on July 07, 2016, 11:19:06 PM
Yeah he brought it up. I never asked.
That is great to hear, sounds like one more reason people should consider Dr Deschamps-Braly.
an old thread I know, but I have an update.
almost 2 1/2 years after surgery I just had another suture "spit" out. I'd felt a very small bump in my left eye brow, I thought it might be an ingrown hair. After several weeks I felt something sticking out, then yesterday it finally came out when I rubbed it. Looking at it under a magnifying glass it is a small knot.
So, don't freak out when your body starts "spitting sutures", it can take years for your body to reject a permanent suture.
Quote from: deeiche on February 08, 2018, 07:57:08 AM
an old thread I know, but I have an update.
almost 2 1/2 years after surgery I just had another suture "spit" out. I'd felt a very small bump in my left eye brow, I thought it might be an ingrown hair. After several weeks I felt something sticking out, then yesterday it finally came out when I rubbed it. Looking at it under a magnifying glass it is a small knot.
So, don't freak out when your body starts "spitting sutures", it can take years for your body to reject a permanent suture.
wow! crazy that after so long , they can still be coming out
Aren't they all meant to come out? Or are they meant to be permanent?
Quote from: Ellement_of_Freedom on February 19, 2018, 06:57:56 PM
Aren't they all meant to come out? Or are they meant to be permanent?
Yeah, just usually the doctor cuts and pulls them out (unless they're dissolvable) and sometimes if there's pieces of them still in there, they push their way out, causing acne and all kinds of other issues.
So basically the doctor didn't count how many stitches they put in and make sure they removed all of them..? :/
Spitting Sutures. Sounds like a rowdy band name.
Quote from: Ellement_of_Freedom on February 19, 2018, 06:57:56 PM
Aren't they all meant to come out? Or are they meant to be permanent?
they are permanent, but your body sometimes rejects them
Quote from: Ellement_of_Freedom on February 19, 2018, 10:40:31 PM
So basically the doctor didn't count how many stitches they put in and make sure they removed all of them..? :/
nope, there are temporary sutures, which the doctor removes. They also use disolvable ones which your body absorbs. There are some that are left in under the skin surface to hold back soft tissue until the body heals, these are the ones that can get rejected and "spit out". Surgeons don't usually tell you about them before hand, but are very aware of them. Just do an internet search for "spitting sutures" and you will find lots of people talking about it.
Oh okay I get it now. That's really, really gross. I hope that doesn't happen to me. My FFS surgeon said he uses only dissolveable stitches..