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Got Injury On Foot. Swelling Appeared After Surgery. What Can Be Done To Heal?
Question: on december 2nd got stigray hit on top of foot. stayed in water extra 40 min surfing. pain got worse so went in. no XXXXXXX present, hot water for couple hours. next morning felt good so went surfing again. week and a half later, whole foot swollen. on the 14th day had surgery, they cut about 2 inches or little more and 1/2 inch or 3/4 inch XXXXXXX washed area with solution and stiched up with two stitches only .within couple days with amox antiboitics was walking on again. felt good. although still had tingling/shocking sensations to the touch around area and middle toe is completly numb on top. then for last 36hrs light swelling. not healing, pain when walking. skin doesnt seem to be healing, more dying like. starting to freak me out a little. seems like its starting to go in the wrong direction
Hello,
Thanks for posting your query.
There are several factors which determine the healing time of an injured foot.
It sometimes takes up to 6 weeks for a foot to recover from an injury.The most probable cause for delayed healing or recurrence of inflammation could be either compromised blood circulation in the region or infection.
The fact that your toes are numb sometimes may indicate an underlying injury to blood vessels or nerves of the foot.
Check the toenail bed of your injured foot for blanching. Your big toe is best, but do not use the big toe if it is injured. To blanch, press your thumb into the nailbed. It will look white when you first remove your finger, but should turn pink again in less than 6 seconds. If the nailbed is still white after 6 seconds, the circulation in your foot is compromised. In such a case it's advisable to consult your doctor as soon as feasible.
I assume you have completed the course of antibiotic treatment ( amoxicillin ) .
If yes then it's less likely to be reinfected.
Mild swelling and pain can occur in healing tissues too, but if there is any pus like discharge , redness Or bluish discolouration of skin , progressively increasing pain and tenderness then it's advisable to get yourself reevaluated by your doctor to rule out an abscess at the surgical site or a non healing ulcer.The doctor may run tests for confirming the diagnosis ( like wound pus culture , X-ray or Doppler etc)
In such cases further debridement of the wound might be needed along with a course of antibiotics and antiinflammatory drugs.
Meanwhile make sure to avoid pressure on the foot as much as possible to improve circulation . Also I assume you have no systemic medical illnesses like diabetes or hypertension which delay wound healing.
So as of now I would recommend to get the wound examined by your surgeon for confirming the problem and starting appropriate further management .
You need not panic as such injuries do take time to heal but can resolve completely if underlying muscles , tendons & ligaments are intact .
Hope I have answered your query.
Kindly accept my answer if you have no further queries.
Regards
Thanks for posting your query.
There are several factors which determine the healing time of an injured foot.
It sometimes takes up to 6 weeks for a foot to recover from an injury.The most probable cause for delayed healing or recurrence of inflammation could be either compromised blood circulation in the region or infection.
The fact that your toes are numb sometimes may indicate an underlying injury to blood vessels or nerves of the foot.
Check the toenail bed of your injured foot for blanching. Your big toe is best, but do not use the big toe if it is injured. To blanch, press your thumb into the nailbed. It will look white when you first remove your finger, but should turn pink again in less than 6 seconds. If the nailbed is still white after 6 seconds, the circulation in your foot is compromised. In such a case it's advisable to consult your doctor as soon as feasible.
I assume you have completed the course of antibiotic treatment ( amoxicillin ) .
If yes then it's less likely to be reinfected.
Mild swelling and pain can occur in healing tissues too, but if there is any pus like discharge , redness Or bluish discolouration of skin , progressively increasing pain and tenderness then it's advisable to get yourself reevaluated by your doctor to rule out an abscess at the surgical site or a non healing ulcer.The doctor may run tests for confirming the diagnosis ( like wound pus culture , X-ray or Doppler etc)
In such cases further debridement of the wound might be needed along with a course of antibiotics and antiinflammatory drugs.
Meanwhile make sure to avoid pressure on the foot as much as possible to improve circulation . Also I assume you have no systemic medical illnesses like diabetes or hypertension which delay wound healing.
So as of now I would recommend to get the wound examined by your surgeon for confirming the problem and starting appropriate further management .
You need not panic as such injuries do take time to heal but can resolve completely if underlying muscles , tendons & ligaments are intact .
Hope I have answered your query.
Kindly accept my answer if you have no further queries.
Regards
Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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