Susan Gets Surgery

My surgery was on March 29th! only 10 months later than it could have been! I was supposed to see Doc Dev last June about my pressue sore but I rashly decided I didn't wasn to go to Bakersfield! and would heal it by staying off it! WRONG (See earlier posts) we went to *Bakersfield Memorial Hospital (2.5 - 3 hours drive). Dr Dev, a plastic surgeon debreeded the wound which was scar tissue about quarter size and 3 cm deep. He cut it open to 5.2 cm deep, 7.2 cm long and about 3 cm wide at the widest. It looks like the grand canyon! He scraped away the bone infection (osteomyelitis) he says he got all that infection. Then he put a wound vac on it. They let me stay all night (this was done on an *"out patient" basis! On Fri about 10:30 we finally got out of there and I felt well enough to drive home--I didn't want to transfer twice into the passenger seat and possibly dislodge the suction cup on my butt! We had to go back Monday for a 10 am post op appt. The Doc was pleased, he said that he thought that he gotten all the osteo and he had sent the tissue sccrapings for culture to verify. But they found a staph aureus infection so I started taking CIPRO for, but it was soon evident to me that it was not very effective (this one has not helped me before). So after talking w/the Dr. Office he said I could just go right to the Levaquin he had prescribed to follow the Cipro for for 14 days**. So I was sweating and chilling a bit until the better antibiotic kicked in, it is better tonight. The wound vac is working very well, we have figured out how to place the sucky part further up my thigh away from the base of the hole where it usually dies first because of moisture pooling or such. The vac gets changed M, W, F. We have some good nurses here that know what to do. So I don't have to go back to Bakersfield until May 14th!!! Yea! The other good news is that I am not confined to bed. Dr Dev said it could be up as I can tolerate it. the wound vac sucks at the wound so it is not putting any pressure on the wound, it is causing a negative pressure! It pulls oxygen to the area from the body to the site which helps heal it and then the blood & juices are pulled out to a little resivior that fits right under the chair and has a battery of course. When I get rid of the infection I think I will feel better and do more. PLUS, the 7 sisters quilt show is at the end of the month. I am feeling better every day. *Managaed health care for you: --My local Dr. said that there was NO ONE HERE WHO COULD FIGURE OUT WHY I KEPT HAVING PROBLEMS AND WHO COULD READ THE MRI --I had to go to Bakersfield to find someone w/advanced wound care experience (I had one last Aug and no one knew what to look for--DEV knew what to look for).--plus what if you can't get there? --Out Patient Surgery--I can see that this is probably ok for lots of things, but when the patient has paraplegia and has to travel a long distance Fortunately Dr. Dev had the ability to order my overnight stay. -The RX--The Ins Co only authorized 10 days!!! ---the pharmacist said they want to get more co-pays from you!