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Questions about adhesions (scar tissue) and hair loss

Hi everyone:

I wondered how you might have dealt with build up of scar tissue after surgery. My stitches came out too early, and my incision site is still open (3.5 months post-surgery) and the dressing is changed three times a week. I have a bit of pain around the incision area and the nurse seemed to think that I was dealing with scar tissue build up. She suggested that I massage the area in order to make sure I didn't get kinks and blockages. Have any of you dealt with this? How often and how hard do you massage? Any other suggestions to help adhesions other than massage? I'm seeing the surgeon next week, but thought I'd ask you all first.

My other question is whether you started losing your hair after surgery. At the three month mark, my hair started falling out in clumps, where my pillow would be covered by my hair when I woke up in the morning. If I put my fingers through my hair, I get an average of about 8 hairs at a time in my fingers. In the past two weeks, I have lost about 60% of my hair. If you had similar hair fall out, how long did it keep falling, and how long before hair started growing back?

Hope you're all enjoying the final days of summer....

Cheers,

Kismet
 

Terriernut

Moderator
Kismet, I'm a bit worried your incision is still open! Some of my stitches came out too soon as well. Bang...staph infection for me! So, why is it still open and what are they going to do about it is what I'd be asking the surgeon. I'm sure the massage is a good idea in theory, but not around an open wound!

I am very curious what the surgeon will say.

As for the hair loss....oi vey did I EVER have hair loss! It finally stopped a couple of months ago, and I'm 8 months post op. :frown: I began taking Biotin super potency 5000mcg and it slowed it right down. As I'm back for more surgery on the 7th of Sept I'm hoping I dont have hair loss again! But alot of the drugs they have us on cause hair loss as a side effect. Also crohns in general can be a culprit.
 
Hey Kismet,

Sorry to hear that you incision is still open, never had to deal with something like that. I did have a lot of scar tissue hardening under my surgery scar (it felt really hard to the touch) for a few months after my surgery, but it slowly seemed to loosen up and now it is completely gone.
As to your other question, yes I did lose hair. About three months after my resection I began to lose hair rapidly. I found it really scary and was worried it would never grow back. It stopped eventually though, maybe two or three months later? Now my hair is growing back and I have all this fuzz that is only about two inches long. Oh well :) The good news is I can say that you hair loss is most likely due to the surgery and shouldn't last too long, soon you'll be a fuzz head like me.

Hope your feeling better soon :)

Fabs,
p.s. I'm in Australia so we have just started Spring.
 
Try using a little bit of vitamin E oil on the scar and massaging it. It will loosen it up eventually. Just be careful not to get the oil too close to your appliance area, might cause problems with getting a good stick from the flange.
I lost a ton of hair with surgery. I hate that!
 
Thanks so much! Fabs, it's great to hear that the hair grows back! I have balding spots on the sides, and it's not a pretty sight! I try not to let ego/vanity get in the way, but it's a bit difficult with the fallout. Also, I'd typed the 'last days of summer/first smell of spring' (for the friends in the South), but I must have deleted it by accident. I did not mean to leave you all out! My apologies to you...I hope life is good in Wollongong!

Poolside, I've just gone and bought myself some Vitamin E cream and will start applying it now. Thanks for the tip.

Misty, my wound is still open because of all the post-surgery fluid build up. The wound is the site that it's draining out of, and the incision site is only 1cm deep, but they're keeping it open for the last dregs of the fluid to come out. This is what I'm going to see the surgeon about since the last CT scan showed that most of the fluid had come out and the fluid is no longer infected. I have my fingers crossed that you don't lose hair this time around---you've got enough on your plate! By the way, what is Biotin? Do you get it at the pharmacy? I'm taking B complex vitamins, but I'm not familiar with Biotin. I'd really appreciate any info you could give me.

Thanks for all your replies. I really appreciate it.

Kismet
 

Terriernut

Moderator
I got mine on Amazon.co.uk (and it was sent from the USA)....But if you have a Walmart there....and I know you do, you can find the super potency Biotin there. 5000mcg. You have to take a high dose. It is a B vitamin. But as we dont absorb B vitamins very well, you, like me probably have a deficiency. Regardless of whether you do or not, Biotin will help with your hair and nails. As will lack of stress. And good luck on that!

I'm so sorry you've had to put up with an open wound that long! I'd be PETRIFIED!!! I was when my staples were removed too soon and it was open. I was a basket case with worry. I laid there on the sofa afraid to move much to be honest. Everytime I moved it opened a bit.
 
I Haven't much hair to lose these days so haven't noticed that really. But one thing I have noticed is that all my fingernails & toenails developed a ridge from roughly the time of surgery. Sure I read somewhere that its a sign of trauma. Weird really.
Rgds
Grant
 

Silvermoon

Moderator
Yes, much like in the animal kingdom, when our bodies go through stressful situations, our hair falls out.... arg!!! But yes, once the body feels like it is back on an even setting and starts to heal, your hair grows back (maybe not QUITE as plentiful as before, but it will grow back) and our skin and nails will improve too.... I think what it is is the bodys way of saying "OK I can only do so much right now, and hair and nails are not an absolute priority, so let will not "feed" them as much as try and keep the rest of the body going."

For females of child-bearing age, you may also notice that your "cycle" slows down or even stops for up to a year after surgery as well - again your body's way of saying "Yeah, we are just trying to keep YOU alive for now - so no babies for you!!" (DO NOT depend on this as birth control, however!!!)

I always find that when I am in a flare (or after surgery) the other thing that happens to me is I CRAVE protein, especially beef!! I have been known to eat a whole beef roast (enough for 4 - 5 people) in one day all by myself!! Again, I think it is my body's way of saying "Hey! I need to rebuild!! Send down the building blocks!!"... lol

I would suspect that as long as you are trying to heal your incision/sinus/drainage spot, that you will lose your hair :( . It sucks, but it does come back.

Hopefully it works itself out for you soon!!

Squishy hugs from The Moon.
 

Nyx

Moderator
Damn...my cycle didn't even pause for the cause....lol Went back to the way I was in high school actually (which was awful actually)....I think my body's backwards....lol
 
Location
N.Z
Hi Kismet,
Sorry to hear your having trouble with your incision site.
Im going through the whole hair loss thing at the moment too. Its the 2nd time it's happened. I figured in my case it's when my nutrition has been at it's worst.....both times I had spent weeks in hospital plus no food for a couple of weeks. Or maybe hospital food is the cause (ha ha)
I cut my hair short last time it happened, it seemed to hide it well and it eventualy grew back normal.
I hope your incision site starts to behave for you soon.

M
 
Grant, if I recall correctly, I think my doctor once told me that the ridges on my nails were in part because of anemia. And yep, trauma seems to have all kinds of weird effects.

Silver: Thanks for the squishy Moon hugs! Right after surgery, my skin started to peel, and at that time, I looked at it as shedding the old and giving me healthy, rejuvenated skin. My ego is getting in the way of my having that attitude with my hair! At this point, I'm a bit scared to touch it---every contact brings out a fistful of hair. And as for my cycle, wouldn't you know it, I got my period the very day AFTER my surgery. Oh, I was flippin' mad. And then nothing till last week, so I guess it's a sign of things improving.

Cindy, I'm sorry that you didn't get a post-surgery reprieve---that sucks. I was glad that my body gave me a bit of a break---it 'owed' me after the day-after-surgery debacle.

Mussen: I did it! I just got back home from having my hair buzzed short into a super-short pixie cut. My friend has made interesting designs throughout so it looks like the balding spots are meant to be there. I'm about 20+ years too old for the cut, but hey, what do I care!

Misty: I know exactly what you mean---for ages, I was terrified to even go to the bathroom in case the wound leaked. Initially, it was leaking A LOT and would go all over my belly and legs every time I was in an upright position. I was getting tired of the constant cleanup. Its slowed down a lot, but last week, it leaked out and when it does, the gunk gets under my appliance so I have to change my appliance and clean up the skin area as well. At times, I get quite frustrated with it all.
 
I'm interested to read about the ridged nails and hair loss. Also thedry skin...I have lost what seems to be layers of skin on my knuckles and between my thumb and forefinger. Do you think this is bad diet? I take all sorts of supplements. Thoought I might try biotin.
Is it expensive?
 
I had my first op in april and second in july and after the second op i noticed my hair really falling out, it was horrible. I couldn't even run my fingers through my hair without clumps coming out and the same when i washed my hair. it seems to be stopping now slowlybut my hair has certainly gone a very thin! I'm too young to be going bald!!
 
When I saw my doctor about the hair loss, he ordered some blood tests to check out my liver and kidney functions, iron, B12, as well as my thyroid levels. All seems to be fine.

The home nurse whose been coming by to see me suggested that I may have Telogen Effluvium (sounds like a magic spell, doesn't it?). Telogen Effluvium is caused by stressful situations like surgery or chronic illness and will correct itself after an indefinite time. So for now, it seems like I'm just going to have to ride it out.

At this point, I've lost about 80% of my hair and I think I'm just going to have it shaved down to a stubble because the thinning is VERY noticeable. I've also started taking biotin, Vitamin B Complex and a mineral supplement (zinc, selenium, magnesium, etc.).

Paddy: apparently, the hair loss and ridges in the nails are all part of the same healing path and both indicate illness.

Martin: I hope your hair stops shedding soon. The B complex vitamins and mineral supplement were recommended by a naturopathic doctor. She also said to continue taking my Vitamin D as it helps in hair regeneration.

Cheers,
Kismet
 
Glum Chump, thanks for sending me the info. So nice that we can tell each other things that I would normally have been worring silently about!
I've come to a decision, together with my very supportive husband, to avoid hospitals as much as pos. I've had some horrendous experiences recently that should not have happened and I figure that if the surgeon says there's nothing more he can do, Why bother?When I've been admitted for blockages they just do IV saline to rehydrate so I live on a tiny bland diet and drink bottled water with a little fresh fruit juice.
So much nicer being ill at home than in hospital where the nursing staff are so run off their feet due to government cuts that one feels guilty bothering them... and the food is rotten!
 
Now isnt that strange My Hair Fell out Before my op , because I was so run down I think , on fortisips for mnths .. but is back now in full bloom .. loking great after two ops .. :)
Oh Paddy I can frelate to that I had sweveral blockages in between ops .. cause there was a prolapse and a hernia . but I ciouldnt take the pain , so waas glaD TO GO IN AND GET THE MORPHINE .. but your right tghe food is dreadful , and sometimes I couldnt deven get a glass of cold water .. so yes home is bext :)
But We do need them too .:)
 

vickyoddsocks

wears odd socks
I never put the 2 together really! I've lost loads of hair recently! Mostly on top it's going rather thin. Had surgery 6 months ago so hopefully it will soon stop.
 
Hey Vicky

Mine has finally stopped, and actually has started growing back. The hair that's growing back is quite coarse, but I'm not complaining! It's still pretty thin, but it doesn't look as bad as it did a month ago. Don't worry Vicky, it'll grow back!

Kismet
 
Hair Loss! Interesting. After my 2nd op I had quite a lot of hair loss, and my scalp became very irritable. In the end I switched shampoos to a more scalp sensitive shampoo with and the effect reversed. I never put it down to surgery at all...maybe it was!
 
Adhesions and hair loss

I've got some good news!!!!
Holland and Barrett sent me an email and I discovered a supplement for Skin Hair and Nails. That's what it's called.
I've been taking it for 10 days and the difference in my skin and nails is amazing. All the skin on my knuckles had dried out to the extent that it was just peeling off and my nails were tissue thin and snapped off at the slightest pressure.There were also ridges and not to be proud of. I can't be sure about my hair, but like Gav I'd had an itchy scalp and that now seems to be settling down.
Tiny steps but worth a try folks.
Thanks for all the encouragement, life can be a bit lonely when you're not feeling great xx:ghug:
 
Hey Paddy

That's great news! It's amazing what a difference it makes to have parts of your body behave 'normally.' Congratulations!

Kismet
 
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