Post Skin Graft Infection
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
Ok, re: not spayed...please ask your vet immediately to also rule out pyometra, this could be just one more complication, needs to be assessed and ruled out IMMEDIATELY!
..........Traci
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Guest
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
I should add, that we only use alternative remedies in addition to what our vet feels is should be done... NEVER ever ever as a replacement for what needs to or should be done... [we're not hippies:roll:] and we're definetly not the kind of people who try to cure our cats oursleves with natural remedies... If i had it my way, we'd move in next to the vet 
We have been there with her so many times while they are dressing her -and we are aware of how much it hurts her and how big the affected area is. In fact we time our visits around when she is being dressed for two reasons:
1. so we know how she's progressing, and if there are any changes in the situation...
2. so we can comfort her afterwards
3. so we can ask questions
The correct approach is aggressive antibiotics (penicillin-type), proper and agressive nursing care and wound care, nutritional support, fluid support where necessary and probably tincture of time to promote healing.
So of course we know, because of what we've seen and experienced that the above statement is true.
As for reiki, like i said before, it's an optional additional extra. We feel, and our vet agrees that so long as it does not interfere with her treatment, there's no harm done trying...
The reiki therapist comes every other day and we're always surprised by how Mythie just rolls over on her back and lays there for the entire time... I'm glad you mentioned belief systems in reference to reiki though... We're still sceptical as to wether it has any effect or not, but for us believing in reiki [or not] is about as arbitrary as believing in prayers and healing thoughts...
Our vets are more interested in the calming effect it seems to have on the pets that are in the surgery... Some of them seem to think that being able to calm and comfort the pets might be something reiki can help them do. Wether it will or not, who can say, but i doubt they're ever going to use it to replace medical treatment.
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I've just read up on FIP, and i don't think she has that either...
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I will find out what abios she is on today when i'm at the vet, and post it here later...
But in the meantime, i'm trying to understand what you mean...
do you mean that the meds she is on may just be keeping the peritonitis(if she does indeed have that) under control but not necessarily curing it?
or
do you mean that in keeping the suspected peritonitis under control it will eventually be cured?
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Granulation.... Before they did the skin graft, the tissue had been granulating for some time. In fact it had begun to granulate soon after they removed the necrotic tissue and began treating it. The vets were very pleased with how healthy the exposed tissue was and how well it was granulating...
Question:
what would have happened had they just let it heal and not done a skin graft?
We have been there with her so many times while they are dressing her -and we are aware of how much it hurts her and how big the affected area is. In fact we time our visits around when she is being dressed for two reasons:
1. so we know how she's progressing, and if there are any changes in the situation...
2. so we can comfort her afterwards
3. so we can ask questions
The correct approach is aggressive antibiotics (penicillin-type), proper and agressive nursing care and wound care, nutritional support, fluid support where necessary and probably tincture of time to promote healing. So of course we know, because of what we've seen and experienced that the above statement is true.
As for reiki, like i said before, it's an optional additional extra. We feel, and our vet agrees that so long as it does not interfere with her treatment, there's no harm done trying...
The reiki therapist comes every other day and we're always surprised by how Mythie just rolls over on her back and lays there for the entire time... I'm glad you mentioned belief systems in reference to reiki though... We're still sceptical as to wether it has any effect or not, but for us believing in reiki [or not] is about as arbitrary as believing in prayers and healing thoughts...
Our vets are more interested in the calming effect it seems to have on the pets that are in the surgery... Some of them seem to think that being able to calm and comfort the pets might be something reiki can help them do. Wether it will or not, who can say, but i doubt they're ever going to use it to replace medical treatment.
_______
I've just read up on FIP, and i don't think she has that either...
_____
I will find out what abios she is on today when i'm at the vet, and post it here later...
But in the meantime, i'm trying to understand what you mean...
do you mean that the meds she is on may just be keeping the peritonitis(if she does indeed have that) under control but not necessarily curing it?
or
do you mean that in keeping the suspected peritonitis under control it will eventually be cured?
------------
Granulation.... Before they did the skin graft, the tissue had been granulating for some time. In fact it had begun to granulate soon after they removed the necrotic tissue and began treating it. The vets were very pleased with how healthy the exposed tissue was and how well it was granulating...
Question:
what would have happened had they just let it heal and not done a skin graft?
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Guest
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
Just did some reading on Pyometra... Sounds pretty grim. I'll ask the vet about that too:
Question: Is there a worst case scenario?
What would that scenario be?
I mean, is there a chance that she might not make it?
What sort of factors would influence this?
It's still a couple of hours till i go to the vet but in the meantime i'd be grateful for anyone's thoughts and comments.
Question: Is there a worst case scenario?
What would that scenario be?
I mean, is there a chance that she might not make it?
What sort of factors would influence this?
It's still a couple of hours till i go to the vet but in the meantime i'd be grateful for anyone's thoughts and comments.
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
To answer your questions....
Depending on how severe the infection. *If* there is internal peritonitis, it's impossible to predict the outcome. With every sign of noticable improvement, one can better predict a favorable outcome. If worsening signs continue, however, such as decreased appetite, unresponsive fever, increased infection, and general slow shut-down of vital organ function, then you know you have a poor prognosis. Based on your posts only, it would seem she is showing signs of improvement. However, there is still reason to be concerned with the necrotic tissue or as you described it: one side continues to be infected.
As for the reiki issue, my guess is your kitten is happy with any amount of attention, she is screaming for attention and a gentle approach that doesn't include poking, prodding, administering of meds, painful flushing of wounds, etc. You can achieve the same effect simply by visiting her in the clinic, you are familiar to her and seeing you will encourage her to have a bright and alert attitude, in which to encourage healing. It's no secret that our patients fair better when their owners visit, that familiar voice, sight and touch makes all the difference when in a stressful, clinical environment.
Meds, specifically penicillin injections (we refer to this as Pen-G). Antiseptics when cleansing the wound.......and topical antibiotics to healing tissues. You mentioned moisture earlier, sometimes moisture is necessary to promote granulation and to keep the area clean and free from dirt and debris which can worsen any infection. Bandaging of course protects the wound from injury as well as dirt, etc.Anonymous wrote:do you mean that the meds she is on may just be keeping the peritonitis(if she does indeed have that) under control but not necessarily curing it?
or
do you mean that in keeping the suspected peritonitis under control it will eventually be cured?
Depending on how severe the infection. *If* there is internal peritonitis, it's impossible to predict the outcome. With every sign of noticable improvement, one can better predict a favorable outcome. If worsening signs continue, however, such as decreased appetite, unresponsive fever, increased infection, and general slow shut-down of vital organ function, then you know you have a poor prognosis. Based on your posts only, it would seem she is showing signs of improvement. However, there is still reason to be concerned with the necrotic tissue or as you described it: one side continues to be infected.
I doubt it would have healed properly on it's own. If the wound was fairly large (debridement requires the wound to be opened further for exploration and flushing and removal of necrotic tissue anyway), it would have been a prime induction of bacteria and further infection. The larger the wound, the more warranted a graft or pulling adjacent healthy tissue near to suture and bring the areas together. The vet knows within a certain time frame if granulation is going to occur or not, if it doesn't, he knows he has to attempt to get healthy tissue 'connected' to promote granulation and new growth of tissue/skin.Anonymous wrote:Question:
what would have happened had they just let it heal and not done a skin graft?
As for the reiki issue, my guess is your kitten is happy with any amount of attention, she is screaming for attention and a gentle approach that doesn't include poking, prodding, administering of meds, painful flushing of wounds, etc. You can achieve the same effect simply by visiting her in the clinic, you are familiar to her and seeing you will encourage her to have a bright and alert attitude, in which to encourage healing. It's no secret that our patients fair better when their owners visit, that familiar voice, sight and touch makes all the difference when in a stressful, clinical environment.
Right, but I will say them anyway. Foregoing religious issues on the board, lets just say its a nice/comforting thing to do, one's personal preferences in beliefs shouldn't matter.Anonymous wrote:We're still sceptical as to wether it has any effect or not, but for us believing in reiki [or not] is about as arbitrary as believing in prayers and healing thoughts...
..........Traci
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
I didn't want to alarm you with pyometra, just want you to get it ruled out. Being that the symptoms, location of abcesses/wounds and persistent infection are all so obvious, it would simply be a condition to rule out. Pyometra is a uterine infection caused by bacteria. If not detected and treated immediately, (usually surgical intervention and/or emergency spay), it can be fatal (septicemia and shock)
It's unlikely that pyometra is concerning at this point, I'm just covering all bases. The initial wounds by all accounts point to abcesses as a result of a puncture wound/bite or other injury.
It's unlikely that pyometra is concerning at this point, I'm just covering all bases. The initial wounds by all accounts point to abcesses as a result of a puncture wound/bite or other injury.
..........Traci
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Guest
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
Ah Ha! Exactly... It's the nice comforting part that gets us, that's why we do it... I forgot to mention that the whole reason why we got the therapist in was that we were in new zealand when all this started and i really wanted someone to spend time with her even if i had to pay them!Traci wrote:Right, but I will say them anyway. Foregoing religious issues on the board, lets just say its a nice/comforting thing to do, one's personal preferences in beliefs shouldn't matter.
Other than that I go in everyday to spend a few hours with her. I usually wind up spending about three hours...You know.... i was wondering, do you think it would be better to leave her at the vet and visit with her there and not risk the stress factor of driving her to and from the vet?
Or do you think we could risk bringing her home during the day?
we live about a 12-15 minute drive from the vet... and she's not a very highly strung cat in general.... what do you think?
Me and my fiancee are thinking that we should try it... We're quite confident that she'll be okay in the transport process... and like the vet said, most other cats would have gone nutz by now... she's been there almost a month and i don't want her to start going nuts either...
And yes, she is improving but, like i said, it just seems odd that we are still dealing with infected tissue and i just want to make ABSOLUTELY sure that the vet is covering all areas of treatment and that every thng is being considered... Am i just being over concerned?
I know it's possible that i'm just being paranoid, but, if i take it easy what if they miss something, and i miss something and then....
*sigh.... it's not easy is it....
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
You and your vet are the only ones who know how she is truly responding to treatment and the nature of her wound. Talk to your vet in greater detail about bringing her home, he can tell you better if he feels it's a good idea or not.
Normally, I would probably encourage you to do so, she is probably missing her home, you, etc etc, but the concern here is stress, you don't want her stressed in the least. This would also mean re-introducing your cats together, after a month, they will be confused and probably frustrated (your kitten will have a clinic scent that will put the others off). You also have to make sure her bandages are secure before leaving the clinic, and you have to know if she is physically able to endure the little things (holding, not allowing her to run across the house if intimidated by your other cats, etc, you have to think of every little detail)
Normally, I would probably encourage you to do so, she is probably missing her home, you, etc etc, but the concern here is stress, you don't want her stressed in the least. This would also mean re-introducing your cats together, after a month, they will be confused and probably frustrated (your kitten will have a clinic scent that will put the others off). You also have to make sure her bandages are secure before leaving the clinic, and you have to know if she is physically able to endure the little things (holding, not allowing her to run across the house if intimidated by your other cats, etc, you have to think of every little detail)
..........Traci
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Guest
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
So far we've worked this much out...
We've been vanilla essencing the apartment and the other two fur balls all week... to sort of help with the smells...
If we do bring her back, we will keep bobbie and zooey in our bed room for the enitire time that she is here... reason being we'll be bringing her home in the after noon and bobbie and zooey spend their afternoons napping in our bedroom anyway...
While she's here Mythie will be kept in the guest bedroom with her litter tray and her food/water etc... as there is less stuff in here and less stuff for her to jump around on etc... We won't be letting her exert herself in anyway... in fact we'll probably just cuddle with her all afternoon... and just let her fall asleep and pet her and stuff. We just want her to feel loved and comforted and also... a change of scene after a MONTH!
I won't start letting her near the other cats till we're certain the infection is gone, and when the stitches have dissolved entirely...
In the mean time the other two can just investigate her room while she is back at the vet...
You know... apart from the gauze they have inserted she isn't bandaged up at all... is this unusual? should i ask the vet why he has chosen to do this? she has a collar on though... i'm going to try and take a picture of the wound today... i'll post it later so you have a better idea....
To begin with we may do this every other day... and in about a week we'll start doing it everyday, hopefully by then the vet will discharge her anyway.
We've been vanilla essencing the apartment and the other two fur balls all week... to sort of help with the smells...
If we do bring her back, we will keep bobbie and zooey in our bed room for the enitire time that she is here... reason being we'll be bringing her home in the after noon and bobbie and zooey spend their afternoons napping in our bedroom anyway...
While she's here Mythie will be kept in the guest bedroom with her litter tray and her food/water etc... as there is less stuff in here and less stuff for her to jump around on etc... We won't be letting her exert herself in anyway... in fact we'll probably just cuddle with her all afternoon... and just let her fall asleep and pet her and stuff. We just want her to feel loved and comforted and also... a change of scene after a MONTH!
I won't start letting her near the other cats till we're certain the infection is gone, and when the stitches have dissolved entirely...
In the mean time the other two can just investigate her room while she is back at the vet...
You know... apart from the gauze they have inserted she isn't bandaged up at all... is this unusual? should i ask the vet why he has chosen to do this? she has a collar on though... i'm going to try and take a picture of the wound today... i'll post it later so you have a better idea....
To begin with we may do this every other day... and in about a week we'll start doing it everyday, hopefully by then the vet will discharge her anyway.
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Guest
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
RATS!
My fiancee flew to China on Sunday and took the camera with him... (he's a pilot) but he forgot to leave in for me today, and he'll only be back tomorrow so i can't get that picture
And the photos i can take with my phone won't come out clearly on the net!
My fiancee flew to China on Sunday and took the camera with him... (he's a pilot) but he forgot to leave in for me today, and he'll only be back tomorrow so i can't get that picture
And the photos i can take with my phone won't come out clearly on the net!
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Guest
Re: Post Skin Graft Infection
okay
i just got back from the vet
mythie's diarrhea is worse, but the blood work they did, did not reveal anything to worry about...
they think it because she is over eating
they have given her some pills to stop the diarrhea
em... boy... well, you know they don't seem too worried about the infection... the vet seems to think it is healing well enough... perhaps i AM just being overly concerned.
whatelse.... okay i asked about what antibios she is on...
she's on Baytril, with a strange name starting with 'fluoro' ... will write it down tomorrow
i asked about peritonitis, they don't think it is peritonitis
no fever
today when i went she was in a little sock bandage
and it isn't pyometra....
all in all, the infection is definetly not as bad as it was yesterday, but then today the diahrreah is worse...
how did that happen?
anyway, tomorrow hopefully i can bring her back for a little while, the vet didn't seem to think it'd be too much of a problem...
I wish i could just kick something... Really Really HARD!
I'm so unbelievably frustrated... I just wish the vet would say:
There may be an infection, but she is DEFINETLY going to be okay...
I think all of us need to hear that at the moment, this has been a very very difficult week for us.
i just got back from the vet
mythie's diarrhea is worse, but the blood work they did, did not reveal anything to worry about...
they think it because she is over eating
they have given her some pills to stop the diarrhea
em... boy... well, you know they don't seem too worried about the infection... the vet seems to think it is healing well enough... perhaps i AM just being overly concerned.
whatelse.... okay i asked about what antibios she is on...
she's on Baytril, with a strange name starting with 'fluoro' ... will write it down tomorrow
i asked about peritonitis, they don't think it is peritonitis
no fever
today when i went she was in a little sock bandage
and it isn't pyometra....
all in all, the infection is definetly not as bad as it was yesterday, but then today the diahrreah is worse...
how did that happen?
anyway, tomorrow hopefully i can bring her back for a little while, the vet didn't seem to think it'd be too much of a problem...
I wish i could just kick something... Really Really HARD!
I'm so unbelievably frustrated... I just wish the vet would say:
There may be an infection, but she is DEFINETLY going to be okay...
I think all of us need to hear that at the moment, this has been a very very difficult week for us.