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54100 F-NANCY
Two pairs of compressive elastic tights or stockings class 2, will be put on the leg, (superimposed) one on top of the other and will not be removed during the two nights and days following the operation.: that is why you must remember to bring a pair of pants and sanitary towels with you in the operation room.
Should you experience some pain at night, in the sleeping position (burning or piercing sensation like needles), you must remove the top pair of tights, even during the first night.
The marks or mini-wounds resulting from the operation are sometimes quite impressive, but there is no risk of bleeding.
The tights are often stained with blood the day after the operation : this entails no risks for your health but it would be more advisable to choose black tights (rather than beige or grey) for aesthetic reasons.
You may choose to buy one pair of tights and one pair of stockings or two pairs of tights of different colours but, in any case, they have to be the same size and the same make. You must be very careful to choose the right size : too small tights will be unbearable and too big ones will crease at the back of your knees or in your groin causing a triple ring of compression and damaging your skin . Do not think that tights that do not fit the day you buy them will fit later!
On the 2nd day, you will take off the two pairs of tights and have a light shower to clean your leg, then you will put on one pair of tights and wear them all day long while in a standing position.
On the day following the operation you can go back to your normal activities
During the first week, you will keep on wearing two pairs of tights during the day.
In a survey concerning 800 operated patients, 75% of them said they could go back to their domestic activities on the day following the operation.
During this week, you may a have daily "Fraxiparin" or "Lovenox" injection (heparin with a low molecular weight) given at the same time, every day. This treatment is very effective to prevent embolism or phlebitis. That is why it is imperative to have your platelets checked, with a simple blood test, by your G.P (General Practitioner).
For the aesthetic quality of the scars, you should not have a bath in the two weeks following the operation. However showers are permitted as soon as the elastic dressings or the two pairs of tights are removed.
The mini-wounds may present with small spiky scabs which look like some hair or stitches sticking out of the wounds : those are not stitches and should not be scratched or picked off . You may however cut them at skin level with a neat pair of scissors
With confidence, you can leave the clinic at the end of the afternoon, on the very day of your operation.
Do not forget that, according to the law, you must be accompanied when leaving the clinic and during the next 24 hours, with the possibility of making phone calls at any time. Living far away from the clinic is not a drawback. Out of 2000 operated patients, 95% of them lived as far as 100km from Nancy.
During the 24 hours following the anaesthetic, you are not allowed to drive, to perform dangerous activities or to sign important documents.
On the day after the operation, driving is medically authorised, provided that you are in perfect control of your vehicle. A sport is allowed in the first weeks, as long as it causes no pain.
It is medically possible for you to go back to work a few days after the operation on condition that your profession does not entail any physical risks for your leg(s). Working will not affect the healing process but, in some cases, the work of the patient may be affected by his post-operative state of mind, should he be unable to adapt his working rhythm to his temporary new physical condition.
In a recent personal survey, 60% of the patients had gone back to work after a sick leave that did not exceed 8 days, and 77% after a sick leave of less than two weeks. Going rapidly back to work is possible thanks to an operation which is comfortable and almost painless afterwards.