A healing hand surgery wound is usually a little pink at the edges, mildly swollen and sore for the first few days, with pain that EASES each day.
Infection looks different:
- redness that SPREADS,
- pain that gets WORSE after day three,
- warmth,
- pus or a bad smell,
- fever, or
- red streaks up the forearm
If you’re unsure, mark the edge of the redness with a pen and note the time. Redness that moves past the line within hours needs your surgeon or an emergency department the same day.
What normal healing looks like
- A thin pink rim along the wound edges in the first days, fading over the first week
- Mild swelling in the hand and fingers, better when the hand is raised
- A little clear or pink fluid on the dressing in the first day or two
- Bruising that spreads toward the fingers and changes color over a week or two
- Itching as the wound closes
- Pain that peaks early and settles a bit more each day
Healing gets a little better every day. Infection gets a little worse every day. The direction matters more than any single look.
What infection looks like
- Redness spreading beyond the wound edges, or getting darker
- Pain getting worse after the first few days instead of better
- Heat over the wound compared with the rest of the hand
- Cloudy, yellow or green discharge, or a bad smell
- Fever, chills or feeling generally unwell
- Red streaks running up the forearm
- The wound opening along its length
Infection after planned hand surgery is uncommon. Diabetes, smoking, steroid medication and a wet dressing all raise the risk. See the diabetic hand.
The emergency version
A finger that is swollen along its whole length, held slightly bent, and very painful when you try to straighten it may have an infection inside the tendon sheath.
That needs an emergency department the same day.
See flexor tendon sheath infection and hand infections.
Other things that look worrying but usually aren’t
- A small red bump on the scar a few weeks later, sometimes with a thread: a stitch working its way out
- Blisters at the dressing edge from tape or a dressing that was too tight
- Swollen, puffy fingers that improve with elevation. See swelling after a hand injury
- A firm scar at six to twelve weeks. See lump in the scar
A typical wound timeline
- Days 0 to 3: pain and swelling at their highest. Hand raised, fingers moving as instructed
- Days 3 to 7: pain easing, pink rim fading
- Days 10 to 14: stitches out for most procedures
- Weeks 2 to 3: once the wound has fully closed, gentle washing, then scar massage. See scar management
Looking after it
- Keep the dressing clean and dry. A bag over the hand in the shower, and change a wet dressing
- Don’t soak the hand in water until the wound has fully closed
- Keep the hand raised in the first days, including at night. See sleeping after hand surgery
- Photograph the wound daily in the same light, so you can compare
- Take antibiotics exactly as prescribed if you were given them
Call your surgeon the same day if
- Redness is spreading past a line you drew
- Pain is getting worse after day three
- There is pus, a bad smell, or the wound opens
- You have a fever, chills or red streaks up the arm
- Fingers are cold, pale, blue or newly numb
- A finger is swollen along its length and painful to straighten
Draw a line around the redness. If it crosses the line, don’t wait for your next appointment.
Every article on this site is written using the Closing Window Method: name the window your condition runs on, find where you are in it, and act while it’s still open.