Hello mothers, last week I had my gall bladder removed. I am doing great, not even taking pain meds. anymore!! My question is anyone have this surgery, if so how long do you keep the steri-strip things on? Do they stay on till I go see the doc in the 14 days. Or can they come off. I don't remember him saying anything but take a shower 2 days later and make sure they dry good afterwards. Hope someone has advice. Thanks
They come off on their own when you shower and they are ready. You probably already know that, but just in case!
Take care. I had my gall bladder out a few years ago. If you want to talk about adjustments you need to make, let me know!
S.
I am a RN at Beaumont and this is what we tell our patients about steri-strips when they are discharged-you can shower as normal just no tub baths or hot tubs or swimming which usually isn't a problem this time of year and they will start to lose their adhesive with each day and shower and that is ok. You can trim the edges if they lift up just don't pull them off and if they fall off on their own that is ok too. Your doctor will remove any remaining steri-strips with your follow-up appt. Most likely unless they really adhere to your skin they will have almost all if not all of them will have fallen off by your follow-up appt. Hope this helps. If you have any other questions feel free to email me. Take care.
My doctor told me I could keep them on until they fell off themselves (the longer they stay on, the thinner your incision scar will be because there will be less pulling on it). I think mine lasted about 2 weeks.
I am a surgeon, and although this is not medical advice, I ask my patients to shower after 2 days, keep the wound clean and dry, and the steri-strips will come off on their own. If they haven't come off in 2 weeks, you can take them off.
Hi N.,
I was going to type out an answer but then read Carie's response. As another nurse, I would have said the same thing as she!!
Good luck!!
If you have surgery, they may be OK, but my daughter had a deep cut, but very small, about 5mm long. They put a steristrip on it and it was a disaster. Really really BAD idea. Butterfly bandages are far superior. There is no adhesive on the butterfly where the wound is, so the bandage doesn't stick to the scab. This dog gone steristrip is stuck to the wound like super glue and it created nothing but a mess. The wound was healing nicely b4 they put the steristrip on, now it's bled some and the blood is stuck to the steristrip and I can't get the damn thing off to clean the wound. BAD BAD idea.
After about one week they should start to come off on their own. Usually during your shower you will start to notice them peeling up. Keep an eye on your incision site when they start to come off to make sure your incision is not reopening. By 14 days they should all be off. By the way..I am a nurse. I hope this helps. J.
N. ~
I'm also a nurse and agree with Carrie. They will fall off eventually, probably by the time you see your doctor. Keep the edges trimmed as they come loose so they don't catch.
D.
You don't need to do anything but check that they are dry and intact. Don't soak, but a shower is okay. The great thing about steri-strips is that they will come off when they are no longer sticky...which is just about when they need to come off anyway! ;)
If there are any left at your follow up, your doc will probably take them off.
I had the same surgery and saw my dr after about a week and he removed the steri strips then, and also examined the incision. I then went back in another week and had the few stiches removed. I hope this helps. I would call my dr and ask about the strips.
My mom had a kidney surgery where they used steri strips. We didn't know how long to leave them on, so we called the doctor. He wanted them to stay on for the full 14 days. Although, if they started to come off, we could take them off and put on fresh. I would recommend calling your doctor and ask them.
They come off by themselves..so no need to worry
