Hi, I had a BCC removed a few days ago, it was a very big one that they removed and he managed to stitch it, but he stitched it very very tight he told me no movement for 14 days with very minimal walking. From the second he did them they felt so so tight. But do these look okay to you. It’s the first time I’ve took the bandaging off to replace it.

I’m scheduled for knee surgery on Tuesday- meniscus repair. I’ve developed a slight amount of congestion and a tiny cough. No fever. I feel fine otherwise. I’m afraid they’ll cancel my surgery if I tell them. I really want to get this done and start recovering. Any ideas?

To set up the stage... I was diagnosed with low vitamin D, and anemia... Had my surgery on 12/10/2024.

After surgery I have not been feeling well I almost feel like I died on that dang table...

I got the vitamin D deficiency address 2 weeks ago back at 67.

I have received 2 iron Infusion s last one was yesterday Thursday. I am trying to figure out if all this has impacted my post surgery recovery... Some days I feel fine others i am a emotional wreck.

Thank you in advance.

Hi Reddit,

Looking for loupes. UK based. Looked at usual recommendations (lemonchase etc) but they are >£3000 which for me is out of budget.

Looking for any advice on a company offering a decent set for £500-1000. Use as surgeon. Upper limb / hand and wrist.

Thanks!

I hope this isn’t against the rules, I’m not really asking for medical advice I just am curious about the potential surgery I’m having and just hoping for some insight because it will be a while before my surgery discussed it directly with me and I want to be mentally prepared for the possibility.

For a little backstory: 35 year old female with hx of gastric cancer treated with chemo and laparascopic total gastrectomy 18 months ago. Been fine ever since. Presented to er in December with symptoms of a bowel obstruction.

After various tests including CT scan and colonoscopy they found I have a structure in the proximal end of the sigmoid colon and biopsies were negative for cancer but showed ischemic colitis which honestly has all my doctors really stumped and confused due to my age. I was referred to a colo-rectal surgeon and he wants to do surgery but wants further testing just to completely rule out a gastric cancer reccurence before proceeding with surgery. So far there is not really a big concern about that but we have to make sure since this situation is weird.

Anyways!! If everything comes back fine, he is going to go in there and operate. I am assuming a resection in the colon to remove the structure (its 4cm), and the ischemic colitis if it’s still there. But I’m reading and it seems like they often do a temporary ostomy with a resection in that area. I am okay with this I just want to be prepared for that possibility and also maybe just a general idea on recovery time and what to expect.

If you made it this far, thanks. I hope this doesn’t break the rule. I’m not asking for any advice on cancer related stuff or anything related to my health, just curious about the logistics of the surgery. Thanks you for your time.

Hey everyone, I'm an M1 who has a definite interest in pursuing a surgical speciality further on in my career.

I want to get one foot in the door as early as possible, and do as much as possible to get to my goal and be working on it ASAP.

What can I do to immerse myself as much as possible in surgery and advance my interest in it? Of course, doing well in anatomy is important, but what else should I pursue?

Edit - Overwhlemed by all of the replies! Research - network - perform well in anatomy.

I have a small rip in a nice Rab down jacket that I love. Which suture (size / material) should i grab from the OR and what type of knots/suture would yall use for a small < 1CM tear in a very fine down jacket?

This post might get booted, but a quick answer would be great. And FYI im an intensivist, so I'm used to just throwing basic knots for my procedures.

Hi everyone, I’m a med student wrapping up my surgery rotation. I really loved surgery and could see myself going into it, but the residency gives me pause. After 2 months on the rotation plus studying, I’m absolutely drained and exhausted. I have fun every day, but I also come home with soreness, headaches, and feel lightheaded on rounds. The thing is, student hours are around 10-12 hours a day Mon-Fri. Meanwhile residents are pulling 24s and here on weekends. Could I last through a surgery residency? Is this normal for students to feel? How do people adjust to residency?

I plan on pursuing a career as a cosmetic surgeon. I will be obtaining a high-school equivalency within the next few months and want to start attending college classes as soon as I possibly can. Is there anything you wish you knew before joining the surgical field? What should my first steps be after obtaining my HSE???

Hi Everyone,

I'm creating a surgical procedure naming convention for our Hospitals in an effort to standardise our procedure list. The Vascular specialty in particular has been difficult as there are so many variants in procedures. I'm looking for some guidance with the following questions as I don't have a medical background (Nurse IT).

1. Bypass graft surgery vs Bypass surgery. It's to my understanding these are the same? E.g. Femoral Bypass surgery and Femoral Bypass graft surgery are the same?

2. Some existing procedures are named Bypass graft of x to x. For example, Bypass graft of Femoral to femoral artery. Is this not the same as just Bypass graft of Femoral artery?

I'm so sorry if these questions are silly or this isn't the right place for them (I'm not sure if this counts as medical advice). We do have an opportunity with subject matter experts later down the track but I want to get things right when I can. Any help is appreciated thank you!

I have always wanted to be in the medical field. Right now I am a sterile tech for an oral surgeon. I have a suture kit and the “flesh” mat to practice stitches on, I have aced every anatomy or class related to the human body. It is the basic classes I have issues with, I have a learning disability (ADHD). Those basic classes don’t resonate with me as deeply as the human body related classses. I have always been advanced in the areas or anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, etc, etc. it’s the chemistry and math I have major problems with. I recently started working on skills with medical grade materials that are expected of a med student. I’m just scared that I’m wasting my time taking on these skills and studying various subjects within the medical field. Is it possible for someone with ADHD to be a doctor? If so, what kind is the best to be? I am honestly open to anything in the medical field.

In retrospect i should’ve made this post two days ago, after the pre op, but I’ve been a puddle of anxiety.

Firstly, i have a slightly runny nose. When i shower, it’s totally clear. Can i shower the morning of? procedure will likely be around 8am, i have a newborn and can shower at 4 after her night feed. Will i be able to blow my nose before they put me under?

• fasting. The procedure is to remove cancerous cells. I’ve been fasting just as a weight management thing for most of my adult life. Should i fast for longer before the procedure, or opt for a nice healthy meal later in the day while still respecting their “no food after midnight”?

• i have bizarro allergies. Most synthetic things I’ve had reactions to. Like the epidural and pitocin, had the book of reactions for that. I’m allergic to a ton of different medicine like antibiotics and painkillers. I’m also allergic to most makeup, including the glue for fake lashes. These have been pretty severe reactions, when i found out about the penicillin it was a near death thing. What is the protocol for a reaction? I’ve never been under before so won’t know until i know, ya know? No one else in my family has had reactions under GA, but also, no one else is allergic to the things i am.

• I’m having like severe severe anxiety. I’ve been stress eating, sleeping a ton, and when i do need to go out i have a full panic attack if someone asks me how I’m doing. It’s not well. Will anxiety influence reactions? A lot of this anxiety is about results, I’ll admit, since I’ve had to put this procedure off bc of my pregnancy. They said the situation has gotten “much worse” so now I’m fearing what they’ll find when they cut stuff out.

• can my partner be in the room with me when I’m waking up?

• it’s supposed to be a quick thing. Doc said the actual procedure takes >20 mins. How long will i have to be out for?

• i have an old kidney injury. Bloodwork came back fine, but, my one kidney doesn’t operate at full capacity. Will this impact anything?

Anything you have to offer me right now will be appreciated. I’m especially concerned about the allergies and the nutrition aspects of getting this done. When i brought this up at pre-op the woman basically said “I’ll relay this to the anesthesiologist… I’m just here for the bloodwork and urine”.

Also I’m on mobile and can’t add to my first point - how likely are they to delay the procedure because of a runny nose?

I'm a lover of aphorisms, and a collector of surgical aphorisms. I'm curious how this one is interpreted by this reddit crew. What does it mean to you? (author: unknown)

I had surgery for perforated diverticulitis in October. I have a colostomy bag. I went for a colonoscopy yesterday and everything checked out fine. I am waiting to hear back from my surgeon to schedule the reversal surgery sometime in the near future. I am going out with a few friends tonight and was wondering if it is OK to drink alcohol like a few beers. Nothing crazy. Should I stay away from alcohol completely or will I be fine having a beer or two? I've had 3 glasses of wine since the operation and I felt fine

Been practicing suturing for some time. This is a simple interrupted stitch. What do you guys think?

I hope this doesn't count as medical advice! Since Covid I started getting outbreaks of perioral dermatitis. I've mostly been able to control it with metronidazole gel, except for an outbreak every winter due to the cold and dry weather, or if I go on vacation to a very warm place.

Currently on low dose doxycycline which has helped plateau my outbreak, but in February I'll be starting my internship in general surgery and I'm anxious by the thought of what another round of surgical masks will do to my face.

Surely I can't be the only medical professional with this issue? Any profylactic measures you guys can recommend?

I have hand tremors due to a genetic neurological condition called hereditary motor sensory neuropathy, specifically Charcot Marie Tooth type 1A. My hand tremors started a year ago and got worse. It seems stagnant now but there's a chance it'll be worse as this condition is progressive. I take propranolol which helps to turn the uncontrollable shakes to mild ones. Cutting out caffeine also helped. I'm 18F btw, about to apply to med school, my alternative option being psychology due to my physical state.

My dream has been to become a surgeon but I think it's impossible now. Is it really? I am so interested in surgery, is there anything else I could do that could be considered similar to it?

Sorry if this is a stupid question. Although it hurts if I have to give up on my dream because of my physical state, it's understandable either way.

Patient here, I'm having a revision Ganz osteotomy (PAO) soon. My surgeons asked if I would give permission to record it for training purposes.

I realize this isn't a super common surgery, let alone a revision so I understand how it could be a helpful tool for people in the future. I also understand I'll be covered and unidentifiable.

I'm just curious if there is anything I should consider or ask about before giving permission.

Update 1/29/25: I ended up giving permission for it to be recorded. Since I have a bad history with anesthesia the are adding a narrative after the fact so I wouldn't have to be under anesthesia longer than necessary. I hope this recording help with PAOs a lot.

Medical student here in clerkships. My school does an LIC model where I do a lot more surgery clinic than OR time at the moment. I’ll do more inpatient surgery with more dedicated OR time later in the year. But, that being said, while I enjoy surgery I feel like there’s always something else grabbing at my attention to study/learn with shelf exams, clinic information, etc that at the end of the day I’m not leaving enough time to practise at home suturing. I can throw some instrument ties in (not super confidently), and put in a few really basic throws, but not very confidently or quickly. If I practise more at home, I feel like I’d get a lot better, but with all my other specialty clinics and studying I’m struggling to find time to do that on top of everything. How much do you guys actually care if i as a med student struggle with suturing as long as I’m otherwise prepared for cases? (Read up on them, can perform a history and physical well for pre op, post op, understand pathology/pathophys, document well, etc). Obviously when my school does advanced rotations and I have time to dedicate to surgery alone I will be dedicating more time to making sure my throws are done well etc… but I’m not sure how much attendings/residents thought of a med student who’s almost half way done with core clerkships and still struggles to confidently throw in sutures and tie basic knots well but otherwise mostly prepared.

I recently broke my ankle and I have to have surgery on January 30th to have a plate and multiple screws put in. My Dr. told me that I need to stop using Nicotine pouches RIGHT NOW and I cannot use them for 6 weeks after my surgery. I have the 4MG ON pouches, which is a synthetic Nicotine. Can anyone tell me if it's ACTUALLY necessary for me to stop for pre-op and post-op? I just know that during the questionnaire, he only asked if I smoked cigarettes, which I do not. I had to mention my pouches for him to even say that, so how serious can it be?

Another essential suture technique! Horizontal mattress suture indications include:

1. Bleeding control: Temporarily compress bleeding sites, such as:
   • Lacerated arteries/veins
   • Surgical incision bleeding
2. Skin closure under tension: Close wounds with tight skin, like:
   • Facial lacerations
   • Palm/armpit/groin area closures
3. Wound edge eversion: Ensure adequate wound edge exposure for healing, common in:
   • Hand/foot surgeries
   • Skin grafts/flap surgeries
4. Nail bed repair: Stabilize and approximate nail bed lacerations
5. Mucosal closures: Close oral/nasal/genital mucosal wounds

This suture type distributes tension horizontally

I had uncomplicated laparoscopic gallblader removal. My discharge instructions say not to lift more than 10 pounds. My laptop is 2.7 pounds and lightweight case is about 0.7lb, so that is 3.4 pounds. I have a 15 minute walk to work.

Since 3.4 is under the 10lb limit, I know that is okay. But I am wondering if walking with something and carrying it is somehow gonna strain incisions.

I recently had S-ICD surgery, which has gone well. I took a while to decide on having it and asked trusted people I know whether to go down this route or not. Almost all were in favour, but one is much more inclined towards the wellness/nutrition/complementary medicine end of things advised against it, with an argument that essentially "all surgery causes trauma". He has said this a few times and no doubt will again when I next see him, and I find myself running through counter-arguments and getting quite wound up in the process! It is certainly true that major invasive surgery can stress the body and trigger other conditions, and I'm aware of reports such as this one on the subject. I think I'm wound up as he makes no distinction between different types of surgery - major, keyhole, subcutaneous and very minor like ingrown toenails - it just "all causes trauma". I'm interested to know what you would say in this situation. I'm also aware that I have my own biases and tend to defend western evidence-based medicine as my default position (possibly as I'm the son of a surgeon!)

my mom recently went through a set of harrowing hand/arm surgeries and is finally prepping for her last few. The damaged hand will be attached to the edge of her groin for a few weeks to help the dead cells in the hand heal.

Any suggestions for clothing she can wear during the few weeks she’s stuck with her hand attached to her leg? underwear with snaps, and loose dresses seem to be our only good ideas but any suggestions would be appreciated.

it’s been a crazy time for her, and anything that could make her feel normal through this would be great 🙏🏽