Seroma, skin integrity

I had a inscicional hernia  repaired a little over 6 weeks ago. I developed a seroma which was draining through the skin, it was allowed to drain through the skin to the point now that the skin is basically rotting away. (best way I know to put it)  So far no signs of infection, it's draining betwen 2 and 4 grams of fluid every couple of hours.  Now, the skin has a hole in it where you can actually look into the area, the hole is definitely big enough for a q-tip to go into, possibly dime size total, not sure how deep it is.  I've been seeing my surgeon, (altho not since the latest development. The skin is very choppy looking with ragged edges, and I have no clue how it's going to heal halfway decent.  I would be happy to provide a pic if necessary.  I would like to know what needs to be done now.  I was draining enough fluid that I would go thru the gauze into my clothes in about an hour, so went to using sanitary napkins to protect my clothes.  Unfortunately I wasn't weighing the gauze pads at the time, so can't say what amount of drainage was then.  How should this have beeen handled?  I can't believe I'm now going to have to deal with a hole in my belly button area, and have probably another 6 weeks of healing after just a simple hernia repair.
I also had cellulitis, (cultures were done, not bacteria present, on skin or in seroma that are not normally there) which cleared up with prednisone.  
HELP PLEASE!  

[Howard Rosenberg, MD]

Assuming that the skin is viable (your sugeon can determine this), the first this to do is to allow the seroma to resolve.  This may take a week or more, unless there is an underlying infection or foreign body reaction to suture material.  Once seroma and drainage have stopped, then I would allow some time (four to six months) before dealing with residual skin issues.  This should all be discussed with your surgeon, who is in a much better position to evaluate your situation and comment about your prognosis.