How common is fever after birth in caesarean wound infection?

A caesarean wound infection may cause increasing redness, warmth, swelling, tenderness, or discharge around the incision. The wound may open slightly, and you may feel generally unwell or develop chills. Fever after birth can have other causes, including breast inflammation, urine infection, or infection in the uterus, so clinicians assess the whole postpartum picture rather than relying on temperature alone.

Contact your maternity unit, midwife, or doctor promptly if fever occurs with worsening wound pain, redness, discharge, or a change in the incision. Keep the area clean and dry, wash your hands before touching it, and follow the wound-care instructions you were given. Do not squeeze the wound or apply unprescribed creams. A clinician may examine the incision and decide whether treatment or a wound sample is needed.

Seek urgent medical help for rapidly spreading redness, severe wound pain, heavy bleeding, confusion, fainting, breathing difficulty, or feeling suddenly much worse. Postpartum infection can progress, and prompt assessment matters even when the incision looks small. If you cannot reach your maternity team, use local urgent or emergency services.

Ask whether the incision shows infection, whether it needs opening or sampling, and how to take any prescribed treatment. Confirm how to bathe, dress, and observe the wound, and ask which changes should trigger a same-day call.