DEAR DR. GOTT: In November 2009, I pulled a rib muscle in my back while working out in the gym. It later became abscessed and subsequently burst, discharging a cloudy liquid. The following month, I saw a surgeon who thought it could be infected. He cut into the wound to remove the fluid and bad tissue. At home, we had to pack the wound and cover it two times a day. This created tension with my wife, as she had to do it because I could not reach the area.
In June 2010, the surgeon decided the wound was not healing. He suggested that he reopen it, remove additional tissue and sew it up, turning it into a primary wound. The initial wound was 5.5 centimeters deep by 5 centimeters long and 4 centimeters wide. Now it is going to be made even larger.
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