Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Two week report: entry cut is healed.

After two weeks of pampering my implant entry wound, I figured it was time to pull the band-aid off. Up to this point I had kept it loosely covered, changing the bandage as necessary and treating with Neosporin. At first glance it looked as if the wound had yet to heal. The area around the entry cut had turned white and it looked like a popped blister, for lack of a better comparison. I was afraid that the magnet was once again rejecting and working itself out of my finger. After a quick shower and a gentle scrub, however, the layer of dead white skin came off and revealed that the entry wound had completely closed up.

Implant entry point after 15 days, up close and under direct LED light. The camera makes it look a lot worse than it actually is.
The second attempt is officially more successful than the first attempt which, as you may recall, failed at week 3 when the magnet came out like a splinter. In the picture above, you see the freshly healed layer of skin where the incision was made, surrounded by dry, cracked skin (I don't exactly moisturize regularly...) The photo makes the area look quite ragged, but it's the same effect you get when you examine your skin with a magnifying glass: what's normal and healthy to your eyes looks rough and gross up close. In fact, the site of the first rejected implant is noticeably lumpier and has been slower to heal than the now healed implant site.

Under normal light, the cut is barely noticeable. The speckles in the background are magnets being inspected for flaws.

At the time of writing, the area is no longer painful in any way. Full sensitivity has returned to the region and I can grab, touch, poke, and submerge with no problems. The implant is not at all visible, and can't be readily found by touch.

The next few months will tell for sure if the tiny Parylene coated magnet was indeed suitable for long term implantation. As for now I'm just happy to not be wearing a Neosporin treated bandaid.

No comments: