What is Episiotomy?

It is a surgical operation where a cut is made in the perineum, the muscular area that lies between the vagina and the rectum. In the past, it was the most common form of surgery for women giving birth for the first time. However, with technological advancements, there have been changes experienced in the same. It is now only in few cases that episiotomy is carried out.

At the point of delivery, your doctor may decide to carry out an episiotomy on you in order to hasten the delivery of your baby when it is observed that the baby is becoming distressed and needs to make a quick exit through the vagina. If it is considered that you run a high risk of having your perineum torn badly, an episiotomy may also be advised.

The Process 

There are signs that doctors will have to see before they decide to carry out an episiotomy on their patients. The second stage of labor is often reached before an episiotomy is carried out at which the head of the baby would have begun to emerge from the birth canal. Surgical operations often come with some sensation of pain and in the case of episiotomy; pain is likely to be experienced. In order to forestall this, it is most probable that your doctor will inject you in the perineum with a local anesthetic and with a pair of sterile scissors make the desired cut. When this process is carried out perfectly well, you are likely not to feel any pain. 

As soon as the placenta is delivered, the episiotomy is sewn up. A compress or some local pain relief ointments may be applied to the stitches to help you with the pain. At this stage, stitches are very prone to infection and you must be careful. Antimicrobial or antiseptic powders or creams should be applied from time to time onto the stitches. 

After Surgery Tips

There are few instructions that you will be given at the hospital just before you are discharged. It would do you a lot of good if you can strictly adhere to all these instructions although they are not difficult to adhere to. Some of these instructions include:

• You should learn simple methods to keep the stitches clean and dry.
• While passing stools or urine, you should avoid straining.
• Learn to always sit with your thighs closed in order not to put strain on your wound.
• Avoid lifting heavy objects or doing heavy work so as not to put a strain on your stitches.
• Apply antiseptic ointment over your stitches for a few days.
• Until the wound becomes completely healed, always clean it using warm clean water and antiseptic lotion.

Dealing with Soreness and Pain in Stitches

There are times that no matter how careful you get, you will experience some soreness and pain in your stitches. When this happens, there is no reason for you to panic. There are some things you can do which can help salvage the soreness and pain in your stitches.

• The first thing you should try to do is to numb the area where the stitches were made and prevent further swelling. This can be done by placing a ice pack or cooled gel pad on your stitches. If you wrap up the ice pack in a piece of cotton, your skin would be prevented from burning. This method is called the “cold therapy” and it is considered a safe way to reduce the pain of bruised tissues.

• There may not be evidence that adding salt to your bath water will help your wound to heal up but there is enough evidence to show that it could provide some relief for the pain experienced. So go for warm baths often. Pat and dab your stitches with clean, dry and soft towel to dry up.

• Try walking around as much as possible. This is believed to be some form of exercise for you which will help your pelvic muscles and also improve your blood circulation and speed up the healing process.

There is no standard time for stitches to heal. Talk to your doctor if the pain you experience continues, you run fever, there is a persistent swelling or redness around your genital or there is a bad-smelling discharge from your vagina. You may have an infection already and in such case your doctor will have to prescribe the right drugs for you.