Can I get a second opinion on my magnet implant?

I’m at work at the moment and unfortunately don’t have a lot of time to go in to grave detail right now. Happy to talk later, but I wanted to post a picture of my finger for some second opinions. Just a little concerned with depth, mostly, and I think the cut was a little rough. Magnet was only implanted about 18 hours ago, so I’m sure it’s not going to look pretty yet, but thought I should post it here and see what some people who have done this before think.

Magnet was from Steve Haworth’s site, it’s the 3mm x 1.6mm fingertip magnet, used the dangerous things pmk and scalpels. One stitch, ointment, and gauze wrapped around it. Changed my dressing just an hour ago, I thought it looked a little white, so I rinsed it with saline, dabbed it dry with sterile gauze, did NOT put any more ointment on, and wrapped the gauze a little looser this time to give it some more air, try to dry it out a bit more. Thank you to anyone who takes the time to read this and has a moment to lend their 2 cents to me. I truly appreciate it.

Comments

  • My bad, did not know what I was doing, here is said photo.
  • What kind of suture is that? The incision site is rough. It looks like a bunch of small cuts were made to me. Haworths heal up easy though. It'll probably close.. be really careful of infection. Follow strict aftercare protocols and ice it periodically.
    If you have drainage/pustulence, redness, pain etc. though, definitely go see your doctor.
  • You’re not wrong mate, I won’t bullshit you, I don’t think I am as prepared as I should be. That was fishing line, soaked in isopropyl and air dried. Not pretty, but in my research seemed alright. It actually had me worried last night though, and I thought it best to replace it with a simple butterfly bandage and a steristrip. The incision seems to be holding itself quite well, but the stitch had a decent bit of blood on it and I was afraid of it leading to an infection.

    I have kept it lightly wrapped in sterile gauze. I have cleaned it a few times now with saline and drying it with gauze, due to my apparent shenanigans. Only very minimal ointment on it. And I’ve taken a couple of ibuprofen a couple times yesterday.

    Attached is another picture, if you’ve got the time, I would certainly appreciate it.
    Thank you, regardless.

  • If you were a body artist.. I'd say it looks like shit. Lol. But sometimes first time working on themselves? Not so bad. Can you tell me your aftercare routine?
  • I am certainly no swordsman when it comes to off-handing a scalpel, lesson learned there. I certainly don’t intend to do this kind of thing to myself again. Injectables only xD

    I’d be happy to share my routine with ya.

    To my knowledge, it is best to keep the area clean, dry, and open to air. Aside from prior shenanigans, I’ve been swapping my gauze out twice a day, once in the morning, and once when I get home from work, as it does honestly seem to leak a little blood now and then. Not really at all the last bandage change though. So I take it off, spray some sterile gauze with a bit of saline, and very gently wipe it down. And then the same with some dry gauze. I was a little worried at one point, so I was using just a very tiny bit of antibiotic ointment, but I honestly think that was just making my skin white and scaring me into thinking I was infected. Haven’t used ointment in a bit now and it just looks a bit red, slightly on the darker side I’d say. Keeping a close eye on it.

    Other than that, icing it three times a day, about 5-10 minutes at a time. 600mg ibuprofen twice a day, and keeping it above chest height whenever possible.

    If you think I’m missing something or there’s anything else I could be doing to help, I’m all ears. Money’s no object at this point, I want this done right.

    And I just want to say, I know not everyone here is a doctor, nor do I expect a perfect diagnosis and result out of everything here. But regardless, and I know I keep saying it, I truly appreciate you taking the time, Cassox.

  • As long as it heals closed with the magnet underneath, it was successful. With that said, with such a small magnet, there's very little reason to create such a large initial incision and pocket. The incision only needs to be big enough to get the magnet in, and the pocket only needs to be a little bigger than the magnet. I mean, I guess it doesn't /really/ matter, but with such a large incision you're increasing the chance that it could get infected.

    Kudos to you on the after care - you're doing more than I ever did. I usually just implant it, soak the wound in hydrogen peroxide, and throw on a bandaid and change it every couple of days until the wound is closed. I don't recommend that though, I'm just saying that your aftercare routine is admirable.

    For future reference, I'd avoid suturing. In most circumstances it is unnecessary and doing it without a proper antibacterial suture wire might end up hurting you more in the end than just throwing a bandaid on it and being gentle with it until it closes. Also, while everyone's first incision is usually on the rougher side, make sure you're not going over the top with incision size. For a 3mm magnet, you should only need maybe a 4mm incision. Anything larger than absolutely necessary is increasing the chances it gets infected.

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