Most times, the area heals properly without any issues. Still, even if you do everything right, you might experience complications while you're healing. In rare cases, your C-section incision might open (or reopen). In medical terms, this is called C-section dehiscence.
Here’s what to look for and what to do if you think your C-section incision is opening — or just not healing well.
Causes of C-section dehiscence
Your outer C-section incision can open or rupture for several reasons:
Strain and stress
Sometimes putting too much pressure on your stomach can cause stitches to loosen or tear. You can put too much strain on the site by picking up something heavy (like your toddler or a heavy bag of groceries), climbing lots of stairs, or trying to exercise too early.
When your OB-GYN says not to lift anything heavier than your newborn during your recovery period, take it to heart and let someone else do the tough stuff. You deserve the break, anyway!
Poor healing
Sometimes your body doesn’t heal the way it should. Poor wound healing can happen because of genetics or an underlying medical condition. For example, diabetes or obesity can affect wound healing.
This can lead to uneven healing or cause the incision to separate and open instead of joining together.
Necrosis
Not getting enough blood and oxygen to the area can also lead to poor wound healing.
In some cases, the skin cells at the edges of the incision site may even die from not getting enough oxygen and nutrition. This is called necrosis. The dead cells can’t grow and join together to heal the wound, leading to the opening of a C-section incision.
Infection
An infection at the C-section incision site will slow or stop it from healing properly. Infections can occur from bacteria or other kinds of germs. While it’s standard care to get antibiotics right before surgery, you don’t usually get antibiotics after a standard, uncomplicated C-section.
When you have an infection, your body is so busy fighting the germs, it might not be able to heal the area properly at the same time.
Can a C-section scar reopen after years?
