The postoperative period of abdominoplasty requires a lot of rest during the first 10 days and the total recovery takes about 2 months. However, some people do abdominoplasty and liposuction of the abdomen or mammoplasty at the same time, the recovery being a little more time consuming and painful.
After discharge from the clinic, day-to-day activities can be resumed gradually as long as they do not cause pain or discomfort. However, it is important to take some care such as sleeping on your belly up, walking with your bent trunk and not taking the strap until your doctor's appointment so as to avoid possible complications such as spotting or infection.
Top Questions After Abdominoplasty
After surgery it is normal to be admitted to the clinic for about 2 to 4 days, and usually after surgery you must use:
- Drain, which is a container to make drainage of blood and liquids accumulated in the body, usually removed before discharge. However, in case of discharge and take the drain home, see how to handle the drain.
- Modeling belt, to protect the belly and avoid the accumulation of liquid, which must remain 1 week without taking;
- Compression socks to prevent clot formation and that should only be taken for bathing.
In addition, the postoperative abdominoplasty requires special care with posture, feeding, dressing and physical activity.
1. How to sleep
After surgery to the abdomen, it is essential to sleep on the stomach, lying down and with the legs folded, avoiding sleeping on the side or tummy down, not to press the abdomen or to hurt the scar.
If you have an articulated bed at home, you should raise the part of the trunk and legs, but in a normal bed you can place semi-rigid pillows on the back, helping to raise the trunk, and under the knees, to raise the legs. You should keep this position for at least 15 days or until you feel no discomfort.
2. Best position for walking
When walking, you should bend your torso, bend your back and support your hands in the belly as if you are holding it, since this position gives greater comfort and relieves the pain, and should be maintained during the first 15 days or until you stop feel pain.
In addition, when sitting, you should opt for a chair, avoiding the seats, leaning fully and resting your feet on the floor.
3. When to take a shower
After the plastic surgery is placed a modeling belt that should never be taken for 8 days, so during that time you can not take a shower in the shower.
However, to maintain minimum hygiene, one can wash the body partially with a sponge, asking the help of a familiar so that no effort is made.
4. When removing the belt and compression stockings
The strap can not be taken for about 8 days, not even for bathing or sleeping, because it is placed to compress the abdomen, to give comfort, to facilitate the movements, avoiding complications like the seroma, which is the accumulation of liquid next to the scar .
After a week, you can remove the brace to take a bath or do the scar treatment, putting it back and using it during the day, for at least 45 days after the abdominoplasty.
Compression socks should only be removed when walking and walking normally, which usually happens when resuming daily activities.
5. How to relieve pain
After abdominoplasty is normal to feel pain in the belly due to surgery and back pain, as it passes a few days always lying in the same position.
To relieve the pain of the abdomen it is essential to take the medicines prescribed by the doctor, like Paracetamol, fulfilling the indicated quantities and hours. At the moment of evacuating the pain can increase and, for that reason, to facilitate the goings to the bathroom, one can take supplements to the fiber basis, like Benefiber.
In addition, to treat the pain in the lower back, one can ask a family member to massage with a relaxing cream or put warm water rags to reduce the tension.
6. When changing dressing and stitches
The dressing should be changed according to the doctor's recommendation, which usually is at the end of 4 days, but the stitches are only removed after 8 days by the doctor who performed the surgery.
However, if the bandage is stained with blood or yellow liquid, you should go to the doctor before the indicated day.
7. When to do physical exercise
Exercise is very important to avoid the formation of clots, so it is recommended to move your legs and feet every 2 hours, in addition to massaging your legs in the morning and at night. If you can walk without pain, you should walk several times a day, slowly, in comfortable clothes and using sneakers.
However, returning to the gym should only be done 1 month after surgery, and should start by walking, cycling or swimming. Bodybuilding or abdominal exercises are only released after 2 to 3 months, or when you do not feel any pain or discomfort.
8. How should the food be
After plastic surgery to the abdomen you should:
- Stay 4 hours without eating or drinking to avoid nausea and vomiting, since the effort to vomit can open the scar;
- 5 hours after surgery you can eat toast or bread and drink tea if you have not vomited;
- 8 hours after surgery you can eat broth, soup, drink tea and bread.
The day after the surgery should be maintained a light diet, opting for cooked or grilled foods and without sauces or condiments.
Also, it is crucial to drink plenty of water or tea and eat fruits and vegetables to avoid constipation that increases pain in the abdomen.
When to go to the doctor
It is advisable to consult the doctor or go to the hospital emergency when it arises:
- Difficulty breathing;
- Fever above 38ºC;
- Pain that does not go away with the analgesics indicated by the doctor;
- Stains of blood or other liquid in the dressing;
- Severe pain in the scar or foul smell;
- Signs of infection as hot, swollen, reddish and sore;
- Excessive tiredness.
In these cases, it is important to consult the doctor, because a scar infection, a pulmonary embolism or anemia may be developing, for example, it may be necessary to start treatment for the problem.
In addition, in the first few months after the abdominoplasty it may be necessary to resort to other aesthetic treatments, such as lipocavitation or liposuction to improve the results if there has been any imperfection.
