Drainage near/around BAHA abutment

[Melissa778]

I had my BAHA surgery approx. 6 months ago.....This morning I noticed some slight swelling around the abutment and a bit of drainage and crust.  My hair does get tangled around the abutment quite frequently and I do use hair products.  I clean around the abutment every other day with a soft brush.  Is this drainage normal?  Or should I be worried about infection?  Why infection now so long after the initial surgery?  Seems odd to me.

Melissa

[Sam Rush]

The drainage is not normal, should be checked for infection.  I had a similar problem, turned out to be a suture that wasn't absorbed, and worked its way to the surface.. Keep neosporin on it until you have it checked.

[Kencutus]

I would definitely have it checked out.  It don't sound good and normal.  I'm 10 months post-op for BAHA and so far, I have no problem except occasion gunk around the abutment.  I just use the Bracticn to put on after I clean it with saline water and Q-tip. 

[leapyrtwins]

Melissa -

infection can happen at any time, especially if the skin on your site is irritated.

Using hair products shouldn't be an issue, since you clean your abutment which is key.

Hair tangled around the abutment can be a bit of a problem, so you should try to prevent that by keeping the hair close to the abutment trimmed.

I'm with Dr. Sam and Ken - call your physician.

Jan

I don't want to scare away BAHA candidates - so let me stress that infection is not a routine occurrence.  I've had my implant for over 2 years now and have never had an infection.  Not that it doesn't happen, but it's not a huge ongoing issue for most BAHA wearers.

[margen]

I just saw my doctor yesterday for the same thing.  It is a mild infection, treatment is 10 days of oral antibiotics and topical oiintment. 

[tenai98]

Me ENT told me on last visit, that like a tooth, the skin doesnt really adhere to the abutment.  I had slight irritation but no infection. Most likely because I use a reg. toothbrush a lttle to rough when cleaning when visiting my son and forgot my regular one. 
Jan, how often do you see your ENT to have the abutment area checked?  I'm to go every six months for now.
JO

[leapyrtwins]

Jan, how often do you see your ENT to have the abutment area checked? 

Jo -

my ENT has never even seen my BAHA.  I don't visit him routinely; almost 3 years ago he sent me for my diagnostic MRI and when it showed my AN he prompted referred me to my neurotologist.  After my AN surgery, I had an appointment where I told him I was getting a BAHA and he had no idea what one even was 

My neurotologist hasn't seen my BAHA site since my BAHA Gotcha Day - a little over 2 years ago.  Once it's fully healed and you get to start wearing your device, your BAHA site isn't something that your doctor needs to look at on a regular basis.

I still have to make an appointment to have my neurotologist look at the screw from my AN surgery that is surfacing near my BAHA site, but that's really the only reason I plan on seeing him for a BAHA "viewing". 

Of course, if I had an issue - like an infection - it would be a different story and I'd make an appointment to see him.  But if all's well, I'm confident he has much more important things to do than look at my BAHA site every 6 months 

Jan