Looking after your Caesarean section wound

Patient Information Leaflet

This leaflet provides information on how to care for your wound following a caesarean section.

Before your operation

Please have a shower/bath on the day before AND on the morning of your operation using soap and a clean towel, paying particular attention to the lower abdomen and bikini line area. Do not use any creams or talcum powder after washing.

If you have been tested positive for MRSA at your pre-operative assessment you will be given a treatment shower gel to shower with prior to your operation.

Please do not shave your bikini line area or lower abdomen for one week prior to your surgery date as this can increase the risk of infection.

Your wound

A caesarean section is a major operation.

Your wound will begin to knit together after about two days, but the internal healing of muscle and other tissues will take several months.

You may expect some pain and discomfort/vaginal bleeding and discharge, and you will have a wound of approximately 10cm in length that is held together with sutures.

You will have a dressing on your wound for at least five days or longer in some cases.

Your midwife/doctor will advise you whether you have stiches that need to be removed or ones that will dissolve in your skin. If you have dissolvable stitches these usually get absorbed into the skin within two weeks.

If the stitches aren’t those that dissolve, then your midwife will remove these five – seven days after your operation.

Your dressing will be waterproof so you will be able to shower as normal. Once your dressing has been removed you can shower and wash the area with soap and water pat dry with a clean towel.

Remember to try and eat well. Get plenty of rest and refrain from any lifting / driving until you feel able to do so.

What do I need to watch out for?

• More pain than normal/increasing pain and discomfort
• Redness and swelling around your wound
• Any oozing pus/wetness from you’re your wound
• Feeling hot, unwell or shaky
• Any offensive discharge from your vagina

How can I help in preventing wound infection?

Do’s

• Shower before your surgery
• Wash your hands regularly
• After surgery, shower when your midwife advises you to do so
• Use gentle soap/shower gel to wash your wound and pat dry with a clean towel
• Wear loose fitting cotton clothes if possible
• Contact triage or your midwife/GP if concerned at all about your wound.

Dont’s

• Do not touch or mess with your wound/dressing.
• Do not use a sanitary towel over your wound/do not use a hairdryer to dry wound.
• Do not attempt to remove stitches on your own.
• Do not remove your dressing until day five unless instructed to do so by a healthcare professional.
• Do not use any creams or powders on your wound

If you have any questions, or if there is anything you do not understand, please contact the Russells Hall Hospital switchboard number on 01384 456111 and ask for the relevant department who issued this leaflet. If you have any feedback on this patient information leaflet please email dgft.patient.information@nhs.net

This leaflet can be made available in large print, audio version and in other languages, please call 0800 073 0510.

Originator: Infection control team . Date originated: November 2023 Review date: August 2025. Next review due August 2028 Version 2. DGH ref.: DGH/PIL/02182