Had anyone had their stitches ruptured?

[Kardelen]

I had a baby about a month ago. Had grade two tears which was sutured.
my post partum bleeding was almost finished, however I started getting fresh blood on my pad again. When I checked I found a lump on the perinuem closer to the Anus. It was slightly pale in colour and had active bleeding, sort of like a cut.
when gp today but she didn’t really know much about it, just advised me to contact the hospital as she wasn’t able to.

has anyone had any similar experiences?

Sounds like it has gotten infected. If I was you I wouldn't ignore it and I'd go into my local maternity assessment unit and just try and get seen.

@Kardelen , I am so sorry to hear that your stitches are not healing. I had a very difficult first delivery back in the day and experienced similar. It is disappointing that your doctor couldn’t reassure you. Did she examine you or was it over the phone?

A couple of suggestions: If you are still in contact with a midwife, (I don’t know how long they stay in touch nowadays!), you could speak to her about your stitches. Alternatively, ask for another appointment face to face with a different gp and say you need to be examined if the bleeding hasn’t stopped in a day or so.

It’s probably nothing to worry about. In the meantime, warm salted water/warm salted baths can help with the affected area.

All the best x

@threeplusmum thank you. The GP told me it’s not infected but later called me saying to take antibiotics as she couldn’t see properly. Don’t really understand what she means by she couldn’t see tbh, i think she just doesn’t really know much about stitches etc

she was asking me if On my period, but don’t get how a person can be on their period 4 weeks postpartum.

@Dee1224 thank you for the advice. I came home and called all the numbers I had and wasn’t very successful. In the end spoke to the health visitor who said they don’t do any stitch check and the gp must refer me to the hospital. I also called the hospitals maternity helpline they gave me on discharge, but they also said I am discharged from their care so it would be the GP.
so I called the GP to explain what happened and she basically said she doesn’t know what to do and leave it for a few more weeks to see what happens and take the antibiotics. I did ask her if she could refer me to the gynae tho just incase, and I could cancel if things clear up. She said she will but not sure if she actually will. So I’m a bit confused still to what it actually is… while bleeding from it😅

Hi @Kardelen, I am sorry to hear that you are not getting much help. It sounds as if your GP is either very young and/or so overworked she’s not being very clear in her advice! Either way, it’s not helpful for you to have her so dithery.

I strongly recommend making another face to face appointment with a different gp if the problem hasn’t cleared up in a few days and tell them you need an examination so they give you a long enough appointment time. If there isn’t another doctor at the practice that you feel comfortable examining you, do remember that you can register with another GP practice if there is one nearby.

In the meantime, if it is an infection, and it’s your stitches that are bleeding, the antibiotics will help. I assume that your gp has given you ones that are safe for you to take, (if you are breastfeeding).

I remember having a similar lump/lumps along my stitches. It can take a while for things down below to recover! However, everyone is different and you should absolutely get a second opinion if things haven’t settled down soon, plus chase up that gynaecology referral.

Technically it is possible for your periods to have restarted 4-6 weeks after giving birth, particularly if you are bottle feeding or mixed feeding. It’s not as uncommon as you might think.

I do strongly recommend the warm salt baths and wipes. It’s a good way to reduce irritation and cut the risk of infection. Use ordinary salt, not bath or magnesium salts!

Do try not to worry but chase up your GP if necessary x

I also meant to say that you can call NHS 111 in an emergency for advice. I haven’t always found the service very useful but they can be quite good for getting you an out of hours appointment with an emergency GP.

I developed granulated scar tissue in my episiotomy wound after the birth of my second child. It’s a long time ago now but from memory it sounds quite similar to what you’re experiencing. It was treated with silver nitrate by my obstetrician (not in UK so had OB-led delivery) - the experience wasn’t fun but it worked. Might be worth googling to see if you think it sounds similar. I hope you get some answers.

Hey, I had this it was granular scar tissue at the episiotomy site. I also had a second degree tear. My gp gave me a referral to the hospital gynea team and antibiotic which was breast feeding friendly. The gynea team saw me with in 2 weeks. Cleaned and left to heal. That bit wasn't pleasant. Thankfully it healed on my return visit maybe 6 weeks later (it was a while ago) Otherwise she suggested it would have to be re cut and stitched.

I'd go back to the gp and ask for referral to see the hospital gynea team. It was found on my 6 week postnatal check up so I had already been discharged from the labour/maternity team.

So sorry - wrong thread!

Yes my stitches burst. Had the same passed from pillar to post as no one knew what to do with me. I was still under midwife care but she told me to go to GP, he told me nothing to do with him but did check for me to confirm they had opened, and as there was a 4cm gap it needed looking at. He sent me to gynae, they sent me back to post natal etc etc!

Anyway once I was properly checked I was told they don't re-stitch and I just had to let it heal naturally. They gave me antibiotics to avoid infection and that was it.

@Dee1224
thank you so much your so kind. Do you remember how long it took for the lumps to clear?
i had a episiotomy for my first, so not sure if it’s linked. I think I’ll leave it a few days like you said and call the gp again. But then not sure if they would give me the appt as I’ve been seen already

@OneMoreCookieMonster hiya, was the granulated tissue like a lump form? And different colour to the skin around the area?

was the nitrate used to stop the bleeding?

@Brunilde oh wow! Sounds like me. Being passed from one to another. It’s a horrible feeling and I’m sorry you had to go through that.

did it heal on its own eventually? what grade was the tears?
my worry is that it doesn’t seem like it’s stitches that have bursted to me.

I work as a midwife on the labour ward, so I don't really have much experience with tears and episiotomies after they have been sutured and the woman goes to the postnatal ward. I am sorry to hear about your experience. Every hospital is different, however I can imagine, if you were to attend A&E and A&E staff cannot work out what the problem is, they will refer you to the maternity team, or at least get one of the maternity Drs to come over and examine you. It's probably going to be a very long wait to be seen, possibly up to 12 hours if I am being honest and realistic (so plan ahead). However, it's an important part of your anatomy, so you might want to consider.

My stitches burst on Christmas day years ago, it was discovered by the midwife on day 5 check and she referred me to the emergency GP. He was reluctant to assess (no chaperone to assist- so we agreed upon the receptionist!).

He had a look, but advised that it couldn't be restitched without significant risk of introducing infection and it healed naturally.

Hi, @Kardelen, for me it did take a couple of months for things to settle down and for the lumps to go. I think it’s too soon to say if granulated tissue is forming, as you are still healing, so try not to worry about that at the moment. As others have said, there are solutions for that down the line if it becomes an issue, but everything has to heal first.

Hopefully the antibiotics will kick in and you start to feel better soon x

Yes it did heal quite well on its own. It took a while though. I didn't ask what grade the tear was in my post labour haze so I have no idea. It had a fair few stitches though and the gp seemed quite concerned bless him so fairly big.