Liposuction recovery

Because general anesthesia is not used tumescent liposuction, there is less bleeding and trauma to the tissues and the recovery is more rapid and easier than that after non-tumescent liposuction. The following pertains only to tumescent liposuction, which may also be combined with power liposuction.

Each patient is different. With the aforementioned in mind, the following will hopefully serve as a rough guide as to what to expect after tumescent liposuction:

Immediately after tumescent liposuction, patients are able to get up and walk around easily (We have never had anyone leave the office in a wheelchair after liposuction). You will need to have someone else drive you home, however. For the rest of that day, you will want to take it easy and relax. But you are not confined to bed.

Most patients sleep very well the night after liposuction, probably because it is relieving to have accomplished it.

The morning after there is usually some discomfort. Most patients say that once they are up and about, this diminishes significantly. Patients are routinely given a pain medication, but most do not need it or use it.

You are free to take showers whenever you wish, but a bath should not be taken for a week or so.

For the first 72 hours, there will be a lot of drainage from your incisions. The drainage is virtually all tumescent solution. We do not routinely suture the tiny incisions, because the swelling comes down much more rapidly if the excess fluid simply drains out And this is probably easier on the body than having to absorb and then remove it.

We think we have tried everything with sutures in liposuction: After having sutured the incisions, not sutured the incisions, delaying suturing for 1-3 days, and all other reasonable possiblilities, our experience is that these tiny liposuction wounds heal with the same cosmetic result whether sutured or not. Also, rapid drainage of the fluid helps to speed the healing process. Dressings need to be replaced fairly frequently, especially for the first 24 hours. By the third day, drainage stops, and only standard bandaids are needed.

There is usually some degree of bruising after liposuction. This usually goes away within a week or two. Some patients have virtually no bruising, but most have at least a little. Some swelling will remain even after drainage stops; this swelling decreases rapidly over the first week, then more slowly for a month or so.

In addition to swelling in the area treated by liposuction, you may have swelling in a dependent body area (lower on the body than the liposuction was). For example, abdominal liposuction often causes swelling in the groin area, liposuction of the thighs or legs may cause swelling of the ankles. This dependent-area swelling is temporary and resolves rapidly however.

By the third day, most patients find themselves running errands or accomplishing other things if they have taken the time off of work. There may still be some mild discomfort at this time, but nothing that should slow you down very much. You are definitely not back to normal at this point, and certainly it will be obvious that something was done, but you will not be limited too much at this point. Most often, by the third day the liposuctioned area will be tender if you bump it, but not very bothersome if left alone.

You will probably be advised to wear a compression garment for at least the first several days. We prefer compression garments which are not extremely tight, and our patients actually find it more comfortable to wear the garments for the first several days than to go without. There is not any very good evidence that the garments are helpful after the first week or so, so at that point their use is your decision. Before tumescent techniqe, very tight compression garments were prescribed for 6 weeks or more. Decreased bleeding and much smaller instruments used in the tumescent liposuction technique make prolonged garment use and tight garments unnecessary.


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	Jeffrey Melton, M.D., S.C., Chicago and Oakbrook Center Mall, Oak Brook, Illinois (630) 928-0240 www.drmelton.com