It's healing, but it's not healing as well as I would have hoped...
As I mentioned in a previous post, after the doctor removed the sutures, he applied antibiotic ointment before applying the bandage.
He suggested that I continue to apply the ointment each day when I changed the dressing. The good news (I guess) was that the ointment prevented a hard scab from forming. The bad news is that this seemed to inhibit the wound from fully closing. Each day, after I showered, the wound would start bleeding. I was always able to stop the bleeding, but each day, there would be drainage on the non-stick pad. The doctor had suggested that at some point I should remove the bandage before going to bed to allow the wound to "air out." I finally decided it was time, and that seemed to finally allow the wound to "seal." I kept applying a new bandage each day, but didn't apply the ointment. The bandage was more to keep me from bending the thumb, and to protect the wound. Friday afternoon, I decided I could go without any dressing.
Yesterday, the bulk of the scab peeled off. There is still a small scab covering about a third of the injured area. The entire area of the original injury is covered by a thick layer of scar tissue.
The problem is that I can no longer fully bend my thumb. Whereas I can bend my left thumb ninety degrees, I can only bend my right thumb about forty-five degrees. At that point, the scar tissue is stretched as far as it will flex, preventing the thumb from bending fully. Not only does the thumb not bend all the way, but at the limit of the extension, it feels uncomfortable. Not that I'm really overly concerned about the appearance of my thumb, but the reality is that it looks pretty ugly too.
And, as if that wasn't enough, now the medical bills are starting to come in.
I'm not a big believer in what I believe to be a culture of excessive litigation in this country, but I am starting to think that I may need to pursue some compensation from the store to help cover the costs of my injuries, and what I am concerned may be some additional costs to restore functionality.
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Posted by David at May 28, 2006 07:27 PM