Why is my thumb not healing 23 days after corn excision?

Question

Hi doctor,

I am suffering from mild pain and needle sensation in my excision site. My excision was done 23 days ago on my thumb for a corn excision.

My wound is not healing. Now, I take Metrogyl ointment, but there is no improvement. Can I use L-lysine ointment?

Please guide.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I can understand your concern.

I am deeply concerned about your worries. Based on your description, your excision site is not healing normally after three weeks. Mild pain and needle-like sensation at 23 days after a small thumb excision is longer than expected for a simple corn excision, which usually heals in 10 to 14 days if uncomplicated.

Delayed healing can be due to:

Infection.
Poor blood supply.
Repeated trauma to the area.
Local irritation from ointments.
Underlying conditions like diabetes.

Metrogyl (Metronidazole) ointment is used for anaerobic infection, but if there is no improvement, infection may still be present, or there may be another cause.

L-lysine (Lysine Hydrochloride) is mainly used for cold sores (herpes) and for minor skin healing support. It is not a proven treatment for post-surgical wound healing or infection.

What you should do:

See a doctor or surgeon for wound assessment.
They may need to clean the wound, culture it, or prescribe appropriate antibiotics.
Keep the area clean and avoid repeated ointment changes unless prescribed.
Protect from trauma.

Do not rely on L-Lysine ointment for healing surgical wounds. If you develop increased pain, redness, swelling, pus, foul smell, and fever. Seek urgent medical care. From your description, this is a delayed healing of a post-surgical wound, possibly due to infection or local factors.

I hope this information will help you.

Thanks.