I have tape covering all my incisions. I had surgery on Monday, 4/21.

When does the tape come off & should I wait till I go back to the doctor for it to come off. My appointment is next wednesday.

My doctor told me to just leave them alone, but between my surgery and my first post-operative visit was a week or two. Pat them dry after a shower and try not to rub. If the adhesive comes off and the corners start to roll, just trim the part that is no longer attached properly to your skin to prevent it from attaching to your clothes. (I used small manicure scissors to just trim the edges.) I was told to leave mine on as they were the sutures from my surgery--I didn't have staples. Keep them dry to allow them to heal properly.

Any part that remains at your next appointment will be removed by your doctor at your follow up. Congratulations and good luck with your new life. :redface:

Yes, it seems pretty common that they are using what is called Steri-Strips to seal the incisions in many hospitals now. They will eventually come off as you shower but don't "encourage" them to come off early. I like the other person's idea to trim off the part that is hanging loose so they don't snag on clothes.

I haven't been banded yet, but I had my gall bladder out recently, laparascopically, and the incisions look very similar. I just waited for my adhesive to fall off on its own. Don't pull on it.

The problem I had, of course, was that when everything started to heal, it itched a little bit. But I still didn't pull the strips off.

I had my surgery on 4/21 also, but my instructions were to remove the outside dressings as soon as I got home and to leave the steri-strips on till post op day 2.

I think we all have different instructions from our doctors so your going to get different advice. If unclear call your doctor and ask.

i was banded 4/16. my doc said to take the bandages off two-three days post op, and NOT to do anything with the steri-strips. he said not to trim or anything. but as someone else mentioned, all have different instructions. good luck.

I was also banded on April 16th. Trust me!!! Leave the strips alone. I had skin glue after surgery, which didn't hold, and I had to get sutures the next day. I'm still dealing with bleeding wounds 1 week later. The strips will fall off in due time. Congrats to everyone!!!!

I have tape covering all my incisions. I had surgery on Monday, 4/21.

When does the tape come off & should I wait till I go back to the doctor for it to come off. My appointment is next wednesday.

I had gauze over my port incision and just bandaids over my smaller incisions. I developed a reaction to the tape that was over the gauze, so I called the doc. He said to take everything off...this was only a couple of days post-op. I showered without bandages and let them air dry...no problems at all!!!

I am having a reaction to the skin glue.I have a rash around each site and now all over my stomach. Tried using hydrocortisone cream but it had it worse.

I called the clinic about ten days post surgery and the nurse told me I can peel the tapes off.

I started with the small cuts and since they looked okay I peeled the "port tape" off, too.

She told me when showering to wash the area really careful and to avoid hot Water and soap with fragrance for some time in this area. Oh, and no sun.

Now three weeks post op the cuts look really good and I am impressed about how well they are healing. My family doctor was too. Really amazing. The smaller once will not be noticeable in a few weeks.

~Kat

My tape came off within a couple of weeks - surprised yours is still on - I swim every day for exercise and maybe that is why it came off so fast but it didn't cause me any problems - the incisions were already healing properly when it came off.