TUMMY TUCK (ABDOMINOPLASTY)
Dressings
GOING HOME: stage one garment and gauze on incisions with a surgilast dressing holding it in place.
YOU WILL HAVE DRAINAGE FROM YOUR INCISIONS. It is red and looks like blood, but isn’t. There may be a LOT of drainage. It is just the fluid we use to soften the fat for liposuction. Sleep on old sheets that you don’t mind throwing away. This will stop after a few days.
AFTER 36 HOURS: remove garment and all dressings. SHOWER. Replace garment and gauze on incisions if still draining.
AFTER ONE WEEK: should not have to use gauze anymore. Leave stitches and steristrips alone and they will fall off by themselves. Cont to wear garment up to 23 hours a day (ok to remove to wash it).
AFTER SIX WEEKS: ok to stop wearing garment or wear stage 2 garment if you like.
Drain
the drainage tube is to remove excess fluid. It stays in place at least 10 days.
Call us when the drain only has 25cc per 24 hours for 2 days in a row when you are at normal activity. We can then remove it.
The color of the fluid may be dark red, light red, or yellow. It can vary from day to day, this is normal. Also, the amount may increase as you increase your activity. This is normal. There may be clots in the drain, this is normal. You can milk the clots into the bulb if you desire.
To empty drain, remove cap and look at lines on bulb when there is no suction. Write down amount in drain. Squeeze fluid into toilet and then replace cap while on suction. Empty the drain at the same time every day to be consistent in your measurements.
The spot where the drain comes out will become red and irritated and painful. This is normal as well. You can tape the drain to your body to help. Also using Neosporin ointment and covering with gauze help. The redness, swelling and irritation will probably not go away until we remove the drain.
It does not hurt to remove the drain, it only feels strange. You do not need to take pain medication before you come to have it removed.
Showering
AFTER SURGERY: Shower after 36 hours, then pat dry
ONE MONTH: Only showers for one month. No tub baths, Jacuzzi or swimming for one month.
Exercise and activity, driving
AFTER SURGERY: do not do anything except lay in bed and walk around the house twice a day and go to the restroom. Do not lift anything heavy. Do not do house work or chores. Do not drive for at least three to five days and if you are taking pain medication.
TWO WEEKS: Ok to walk on the treadmill, elliptical at low speed, or walk outside You will get tired easily for a month after the surgery! Listen to your body and rest.
IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO RESUME EXCERSIZE AND WEIGHT LOSS after surgery. Many people forget they need to exercise after a tummy tuck, and end up gaining weight, which will effect your results.
ONE MONTH: Ok to resume regular exercise after a month, but listen to your body. If it hurts, don’t do it! It is ok to resume sexual activity after one month as well.
Diet
AFTER SURGERY: eat only bland foods in small quantities (soups, small sandwiches, rice) to prevent nausea. You can resume a normal diet when you feel like you can tolerate it (usually 36 hours)
ALCOHOL: do not drink alcohol for at least a month after surgery
Swelling
SWELLING: you WILL be swollen, uneven and lumpy after surgery. This will continue for up to 6 months or a year. As time goes on, the swelling will go away. You will see the results improve for up to one year. The swelling does not start to go away until 6 weeks after surgery.
You WILL weight more after the surgery than you did before because of the swelling. Your clothes will NOT fit for up to 6 weeks after surgery.
TIGHTNESS is also normal and will cause you to walk hunched over. This will last approximately one week, but may last longer
BRUISING: In general it goes away after two weeks, but you may have bruising for up to 6 months after surgery depending on how you heal
LUMPINESS: you may notice some hard lumps under the skin. Massage or Endermoloige will help this.
CELLULITE: cellulite will not go away with liposuction or a tummy tuck. To help cellulite and to get smoother results, consider endermologie.
DOGEARS: you may notice “dog ears”, or excess skin at the end of your incision. This usually goes away after 6 months. If it does not, they are easily removed with a minor procedure under local anesthesia.
Pain
FIRST WEEK: take pain medication and muscle relaxant. Loosen the garment or take it off if needed. If you must cough or sneeze, hold a pillow tightly against your abdomen. You may have back pain as well, which will resolve with time and muscle relaxant.
ONE WEEK TO ONE MONTH: use over the counter medication and try to get off of the pain medication. It is ok to use Tylenol OTC. Avoid using aspirin or motrin (ibuprofen) for one month.
AFTER ONE TO SIX WEEKS: you will notice electric shocks, itching, over sensitive skin. This is normal and will take 6 months to go away. Massage will help.
Numbness
the skin above your pubic area will be numb after surgery. This is will take up to a year or longer to resolve. This area may also feel very hard. This is also normal and will get better over the next 6 months.
Bloating :
You may feel bloated and weight more on the scale. This will resolve in a few weeks and is normal.
Weight
you WILL weight more after surgery than you did before, this is due to swelling and is normal.
Blisters: small fluid filled blisters may occur around the area of tape. This is due to the stretching of the skin. Remove the tape and do not pop the blisters. Leave them alone and they will resolve in a few weeks.
Constipation: this is due to the pain medication. Try to take cut back on the narcotic pain medication and use Tylenol OTC. Also use the colace. If this does not work , you can get some milk of mag over the counter, or drink a bottle of mag citrate. A ducolax suppository may also help. This is all available over the counter.
Stitches
most of your stitches are under the skin and will dissolve on their own. You may have some small sutures at your incision site under the steristrips, leave these alone and they will fall out by themselves, or we can remove them at your next appointment
Sleep
sleep on your back and in a propped up position for at least one week. A recliner will help. You can sleep on your side or on your stomach when it is comfortable. If you are having trouble sleeping, take a muscle relaxant before you go to bed, this should help.
Walking
You may need to walk hunched over for a few days after surgery. It is ok to straighten out if it does not hurt. Listen to you body
Incision and scar
With a tummy tuck , more than any other procedure, it is IMPERATIVE that you take good care of your scar for 6 months to ensure minimal scarring. Although most of scarring is related to your genetics, your care of your scar will make it heal as quickly and completely as possible.
To help your incision heal better, after Dr Shah gives you his “OK”, start using the brown tape or ScarGuard. This is available at the office. Use this until the scar goes away. You can cut the strips in ½. Neosporin cream or antibiotic cream is not necessary. It helps to do this for 3 to 6 months.
For the abdominal scar, use Brown Micropore Tape (we can give you this at our office). Change this every three or four days or if the tape does not look clean. It is ok to shower with this tape on. Put vitamin E oil in a thin layer over the tape. You should do this for 6 months.
IF ANY PART OF THE INCISION IS WET or OOZING, do NOT place tape of Neosporin scar strips on it. Let it stay open to the air and dry out. For the belly button, cleaning it twice a day with a sterile qtip and peroxide will help. Do not place tape or Neosporin scar solution unless the incision is comepletely dry.
Your scars will be red for quote some time. It may take a year or longer for the scars to totally fade. If they become thick, let us know at your next appointment.
Tanning
You should not tan for at least 3 months. Your skin will be very sensitive and will burn easily.
You should not tan your scar for at least a year. If you do go tanning, cover the scar with black tape.
Depression
It is very common to become depressed after surgery. If this happens PLEASE LET US KNOW. We can treat you temporarily to get you through this time period. It is also very important to BE PATIENT. Please give your self at least 6 months to a year to achieve your results.
Positioning
wedge pillow helps!
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