I'm scared - Do I have a port infection/rejection?

[lovecats85 2]

Ok, so I am going to see my doc tomorrow but until then I will count on you all! On Thursday doc removed my staples and everything was ine except my 2 larger incisions hurt a little. The bigger one has started to hurt more and now it's pretty sore and I noticed it getting hard this weekend but I thought the hard spot was the actual port but now it seems a little bigger. It feels like a hard lump about the size of a nickel and it's growing and it's sore, especially when I', sitting. I do not see any puss or redness and there is no phyiscal heat, nor do I have a high temperature. It's just sore and uncomfortable and when I had a belly button ring when I was 16 my body rejected it and tried to push it out so I am so scared something is going to happen to my port. Is it normal to have scar tissue buildup or something that would make the port sore and hard. It's only been 9 days since surgery - does anyone have ideas/ suggestions/ anything? I'm scared!

[Anwyn 0]

Don't panic!! Getting a hard, sore area around the port is VERY common. Unless you're having pus and discharge from the incision, in my very non-medical opinion you're just fine. It's definitely the slowest area to heal, and the swelling can take a few weeks to go away.

Congrats on getting your band!

[leadiaz 0]

Don't worry, my doc says the the port area heels from the inside out and that is why it's hard. It takes longer to heal.

[DeLarla 22]

It could be the tubing. I kept feeling a hard lump, then it shifted, then it got harder. Leave it alone! I thought it was scar tissue, so I kept massaging it, adding heat, etc. I tried making it go away, but it was the tube that eventually poked out of my infected, open wound. This could happen if the doc put the port too close to the skin. This is my personal experience and my own opinion, so take it with a grain of salt.

I could be very wrong, but better safe than sorry. Good luck, and keep us posted.

[Starr W 0]

Hey Laura listen to the ladies because I'm having the same problem. My port incision started hurting along with the one next to it. I'm in a panic too. I get my staples out on 10/12 and hoping for the best. Hang in there.

[NJChick 3]

Glad your seeing the doctor, can't hurt

[Tricia K. 0]

I'm having a different issue with one of my non-port incisions. 4 of my incisions have healed perfectly fine but one is still very red and raised. I don't have a temperature but I noticed a yellow substance just under the skin last night so I sterilized a needle, poked at it and a little bit of pus came out. Has anyone else had this issue and will it eventually resolve itself? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[DeLarla 22]

Tricia, please get to your doc right away. Infections anywhere near the port site are an urgent situation. Nothing should have infected pus. Better safe than sorry.

[Lynn B 0]

Laura - don't panic until you talk to the doc. I am 4 weeks out and the port site is still sore, even more near the end of the day from sitting and stretching and just living life. Navel piercing are totally different than your port. I have several "skin" piercing (when the jewelry goes through skin only not cartilage) and was told that eventually in some people the body rejects the foreign object and will slowly push the jewelry out. Your port is sewed to muscle under you skin so it shouldn't react the same as a piercing - this does not mean that you cant reject the port but your not at any higher risk than the rest of us.

Good luck at the docs - keep us posted,

[DeLarla 22]

Mine felt like a hard pea. It was the tube trying to poke out - and it eventually did. Don't moosh it around like I did!

[lovecats85 2]

Ok, Mine feels like a hard nickel.... should I just let it be? Should I go see the doc tomorrow?

[Tricia K. 0]

Tricia, please get to your doc right away. Infections anywhere near the port site are an urgent situation. Nothing should have infected pus. Better safe than sorry.

I wasn't referring to the port site. I was referring to one of the other incisions. I did go to the doc last week and she said as long as it doesn't get bigger and my temp doesn't get to 101 or above, there's nothing to worry about. She said it may ooze a little pus but it's nothing to be alarmed about.

My question was whether or not anyone else had this happen to them and, if so, how long did it take for the redness to go away and the incision scar to look dark purple like the others.

Thanks!

[HarleyNana 10]

Your port may appear to be larger because the swelling is going down and you're more drawn to that spot. In the healing stage it is quite an obsession, (fortunately, we've only had a couple of people have major problems or lose their port), I know I was constantly poking mine to see if it had moved or if it was sore, I was even afraid to turn over because I was afraid I'd pull the tube loose. Now I twist and toss and turn as if I never had surgery.

Good luck and keep us informed, you too Trisha.

[Kathy473 1]

Everyone's stories are just freaking me out! Sorry, but that is the only way to explain it! I didn't have any problems with my incisions except for one had a little piece of stitch sticking out and my doctor snipped it off. I still feel soreness around them and the port area itself but I expect that. Reading how some of you had staples instead of just stitches and Stery-strips just made me wince with the thought of it. I had the staples with my 1st c-section and the the Stery-strips with my 2nd and I so preffered the strips to staples. I am so sorry for those of you who had a hard time with your incisions, my heart just goes out to you all. Best of luck in your healing.

[Tricia K. 0]

Everyone's stories are just freaking me out! Sorry, but that is the only way to explain it! I didn't have any problems with my incisions except for one had a little piece of stitch sticking out and my doctor snipped it off. I still feel soreness around them and the port area itself but I expect that. Reading how some of you had staples instead of just stitches and Stery-strips just made me wince with the thought of it. I had the staples with my 1st c-section and the the Stery-strips with my 2nd and I so preffered the strips to staples. I am so sorry for those of you who had a hard time with your incisions, my heart just goes out to you all. Best of luck in your healing.

Thanks, Kathy. I too had stitches and steri-strips and don't really consider the one incision that's currently a bit red a big problem. I just want it to look like the others ones....NOW! LOL...anyway, I'm happy to hear that you didn't have any problems.