Fishing line coming out of spine

[malka22]

My daughter had spinal fusion 3 weeks ago today & her steri strips just started to fall off. I was looking at her incision & discovered a 2 inch piece of what looks like fishing line, jutting out of a pimple, next to her incision. Has anyone ever heard of anything like this?

[amae28]

It might be one of the dissolvable stitches that the surgeon used internally to hold layers deeper down together, and it is sticking out... maybe call the dr office about it? If it is a dissolvable stitch it might just.. dissolve... and not be a problem but i don't know

[LindaRacine]

Hi...

I'm almost certain it's a stitch. It's very common.

Regards,
Linda

[ca-native]

My daughter had spinal fusion 3 weeks ago today & her steri strips just started to fall off. I was looking at her incision & discovered a 2 inch piece of what looks like fishing line, jutting out of a pimple, next to her incision. Has anyone ever heard of anything like this?

Hello there,

My daughter had exactly the same thing with the fishing line at the top and bottom of the incision once the steri strips feel off. I was told to cut the "fishing line" close to the skin and the desolvable stitches would continue to absorb.

Please confirm with the doctor's office what they would like you to do, but don't worry about it.

Best wishes to your daughter for a speedy recovery, hang in there!

[Pooka1]

I agree with the others about it being dissolvable stitching. I had some on my face for a mole removal and some of it ended up coming out rather than dissolving.

My daughter has a better plastic surgery closure on her back than I do for that mole removal on my face. :eek:

[txmarinemom]

My daughter had spinal fusion 3 weeks ago today & her steri strips just started to fall off. I was looking at her incision & discovered a 2 inch piece of what looks like fishing line, jutting out of a pimple, next to her incision. Has anyone ever heard of anything like this?

Malka, it's a dissolvable stitch trying to spit out.

My body (sad I know this after so many ortho trauma surgeries ;-) won't dissolve any type of monocryl stitches (including PDS - the blue ones), and I did tell my surgeon about this beforehand. I had one long regular stitch down my 17" incision ... and thought I was good until about 9 weeks post-op when a blue end spit out around the top of my incision.

Someone evidently thought I'd dissolve a *different* type of dissolvable and used PDS when they stitched me up ...

Since then, I've spit 2 more, and have one working its way out. It's more of a pain in the a** than anything.

Once the stitch is sticking out, just take a pair of sterilized tweezers and sterilized scissors: Use the tweezers to gently pull on the stitch while pushing down the skin (this will drop it back under the skin line) and simply snip it off.

It may work out again, it may not.

Regards,
Pam

[Carmell]

I agree with everyone else. This is internal sutures working their way out of the body because they didn't dissolve under the skin. The body is amazing how it "fixes" things. Braydon always has internal sutures, and always has "fish line" at the ends of the incisions working their way out.

Don't worry about pulling the steri-strips off. They will fall off in their own time. Pulling them off can hurt, and that's not necessary unless they are really bothering her. Good luck and hope she's doing well.

[malka22]

Thank you to everyone who responded to my fishing line question. I really appreciate all of your replies. The strangest thing, though, is that it's NOT coming out of the incision. It's poking through it's own spot...off to the side of the incision. Has anyone ever seen that?

Btw, I emailed the surgeon's PA & here's what he wrote back, "No need for concern. This is a bit of the suture material. It will dissolve from the inside, so it will fall off on its own. If it is annoying or concerning for you or Laura, you may cut the material back closer to the skin's surface with scissors or a nail
clipper. Though I'm happy to have you come in to see me anytime, it doesn't sound like this finding alone would warrant the hassle of coming in."

[Carmell]

Yes, what you describe is exactly what happens to Braydon. That spot (not in the incision) is where they start the "running suture" below the skin. Then they suture up the various layers of muscle/soft tissue and finally close the surface skin (again, usually under the skin). It is exactly what the doc explained. It will dissolve from the inside, and then fall off. The only reason to worry is if it gets infected - red/soreness/puss, etc.

[txmarinemom]

Thank you to everyone who responded to my fishing line question. I really appreciate all of your replies. The strangest thing, though, is that it's NOT coming out of the incision. It's poking through it's own spot...off to the side of the incision. Has anyone ever seen that?

Yep. All of mine that have spit have been ±1/2" or more off the incision.

Regards,
Pam

[Karen40]

Martha,

My daughter had the same thing - the fishing line poked out of an area slightly above the scar. I just trimmed it down to the skin and the rest dissolved. When I asked about it, they said that they don't knot the end and rather leave a tail on either side and sometimes it doesn't fall off by itself after the rest has dissolved. If you left it long enough, eventually it would fall off on it's own.

[ca-native]

Hi Martha,

I've attached a picture of Kim's "fishing line". This was taken at about two weeks post-op (approximately). I trimmed it close to the skin and it has been fine since; about a week later when the bottom steri strips fell off, I trimmed that fishing line too. :)

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/elaineweber/P4071078.jpg

Take care,

[ElleBelleCurvz]

Hi Martha,

I've attached a picture of Kim's "fishing line". This was taken at about two weeks post-op (approximately). I trimmed it close to the skin and it has been fine since; about a week later when the bottom steri strips fell off, I trimmed that fishing line too. :)

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/elaineweber/P4071078.jpg

Take care,

this is a bit off topic but i just have to say, thanks for the picture and also kim's scar looks really good, but maybe thats just me. lol.

[LindaRacine]

Hi Martha,

I've attached a picture of Kim's "fishing line". This was taken at about two weeks post-op (approximately). I trimmed it close to the skin and it has been fine since; about a week later when the bottom steri strips fell off, I trimmed that fishing line too. :)

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/elaineweber/P4071078.jpg

Take care,
I've never seen one anywhere near that long!

[Pooka1]

Hi Martha,

I've attached a picture of Kim's "fishing line". This was taken at about two weeks post-op (approximately). I trimmed it close to the skin and it has been fine since; about a week later when the bottom steri strips fell off, I trimmed that fishing line too. :)

http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll288/elaineweber/P4071078.jpg

Take care,

WOW! That certainly appears to be an excellent correction! Her back appears completely normal except for the scar of course.

sharon

[ca-native]

this is a bit off topic but i just have to say, thanks for the picture and also kim's scar looks really good, but maybe thats just me. lol.

Hi Danielle,

So far so good with the incision. I do have to add she has spit stitches in a couple of spots but they were very small. It's as though the body absorbed most of the stitch but not all of it. Also, her scar is a deep red color but it sounds like that is normal for at least a year or longer. The nurse did say to keep it from getting sun or it may not fade like it should.




I've never seen one anywhere near that long!

Hi Linda,

Yep, it was long. Guess the doctor was trying to catch a big one, lol!

:D

[malka22]

Elaine, thanks for the photo of your daughter's "fishing line." I agree, your daughter's incision & her back look great!!!! I love those even shoulders & shoulder blades!!! Congrats!!! P.S. Thank you to everyone else as well, who posted comments on this thread.