Answer Summary

Members shared experiences with wound vacs after HS surgery, with nearly everyone describing the dressing changes as extremely painful despite... Read more

Members shared experiences with wound vacs after HS surgery, with nearly everyone describing the dressing changes as extremely painful despite pain medication, comparing the foam sponge to barbed wire or a carburetor scrubber. Several members offered practical advice, including using lidocaine for pain management, ensuring the sponge stays wet during changes to prevent it from adhering to skin, keeping consistent change schedules to avoid extra pain, and watching for blood clots during healing. A recurring theme was validation and solidarity around the difficulty of wound vac recovery, with members reassuring each other that the intense pain is real and not a sign of weakness, while acknowledging that tolerating the discomfort is worth it for proper healing and infection prevention.