Necrotising fasciitis is a type of bacterial infection that can develop after a Caesarean section. Read on to find out more.
Preventing infection after C-section
There are certain steps that can be taken to help prevent an infection arising after a C-section. For example, medical practitioners may administer a patient with antibiotics before the procedure. This is particularly important if a patient is deemed to be at-risk of infection – perhaps because she is overweight or is already showing signs of infection.
Administering antibiotics before an infection has developed is known as administering ‘prophylactic antibiotics’, with prophylactic meaning preventative.
After the procedure, the wound across the patient’s abdomen will be cleaned, sutured and dressed. These dressings should be changed regularly to ensure optimum hygiene. A patient should be advised upon how to care for the wound before being discharged from hospital. This will include keeping it clean and dry, dressing the wounds and looking out for any signs of infection.
Infection after C-section
Even if all the precautionary steps are taken, an infection can still develop. This will occur at the site of the surgical scar. It will cause symptoms such as skin that is red and hot to touch at the site of the wound. It will be more sore than usual and may also be accompanied by a fever and weeping from the scar.
If a patient develops an infection after a C-section, immediate medical advice must be sought. Antibiotics should then be given to the patient in order to treat the infection. It is important this is not delayed as an infection can damage the sutures, causing the wound to breakdown.
Necrotising fasciitis after a C-section
Necrotising fasciitis is a type of infection and is one that can arise after a C-section. It is very rare, but it has been known to affect patients after a Caesarean section. Necrotising fasciitis is an exceptionally aggressive infection and will therefore progress rapidly. It will result in similar symptoms to those described above, but they will be more severe.
The symptoms of necrotising fasciitis are: fever, chronic pain at the surgical wound site, skin that is red and hot to touch, discoloration of the skin and generally feeling very unwell.
If a patient develops the necrotising fasciitis infection after a C-section, she should be taken back to theatre for surgical debridement of the infected tissue. This may leave an unsightly scar, but without such treatment the infection will be fatal.
Failure to treat necrotising fasciitis after Caesarean section
If medical practitioners fail to treat necrotising fasciitis after a C-section, there may be grounds for a claim. Contact us for more information.
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