How to Stop Tummy Tuck Drainage?

At 4 weeks post abdominoplasty, my drainage is still 60cc/day. What else can be done and what likely outcome am I looking forward to at this point?

I am a healthy 42 years old with large weight loss (without surgery) 3 years ago.

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9 Doctor Answers | Asked by 123alex123 in orange, orange, ca, USA

Doctor Answers (9)
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Pronlonged drain output after Tummy Tuck

AS the other physicians have said, 4 weeks is a long time because most drains come out at 1-2 weeks in over 90% of patients. Having said that, occasionally I have had a patient in whom drainage persists far longer than that and I take each patient as an individual and discuss the options. Therefore you should discuss this with your surgeon whose management options may differ from mine. In these situations, I have clamped off the drain for several hours to try to "train" the... more

Otto Joseph Placik, MD

32 reviews

Chicago Plastic Surgeon

I would remove the drains

Sometimes, just having the drains present in the abdomen will cause drainage. I would remove the drains now and then see you every 3 days or so for 2 -3 visits. IF you accumulate a lot of fluid (which is unlikely) your surgeon can always aspirate this fluid easily in the office.

Significance of drainage

You will always have some drainage with suction drains. If you have two drains and your total drainage is about 60 ccs., then each drain is evacuating 30ccs. or about a little over 1 cc. per hour. Because of the vacuum effect when the bulbs are placed to suction, you will always draw out fluid from tissue around the drain. Of course your surgeon will determine the cause of your specific drainage situation but if you and he are concerned about it and there is no immediate reason for... more

Robin T.W. Yuan, MD

4 reviews

Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

Stop Drainage

The fact that you have had your drains for 4 weeks is some what normal usually in most patients the drains come off after 1 week or 1 week and a half , but it does happen usually aside from the fact that it happens in large surgeries it is also caused when to much movement is made when the patient does not follow the indications properly which is doing the minimum activity that causes there to be more accumulation of liquid. But if you are now draining 60 cc your are ready to take them out... more

Continue using drains for optimum healing

I am sorry for your continued drainage. Unfortunately increased drainage is seen in larger tummy tucks. I always use drains on my abdominoplasties and feel it is essential for optimum wound healing. If you were my patient I would l continue using the drains until they have drained at less than 30 cc for 2 continuous days. I suggest you consult with your surgeon if anything can be injected into the drain ports to sclerose the cavity. With patients that... more

Thrombin

I had a patient such as yourself and I read about a study using Tisseal, a product that is used to aid in clotting, for this purpose. I used it and the results were miraculous. Ask your doctor to research using this product. Good Luck.

Could be many reasons for increased drainage after Tummy Tuck

As the other surgeons have already mentioned, there may be many reasons for increased drainage at 4 weeks. In my experience, liquifying fat, which might also cause areas of firmness in your lower tummy, might be a possibility. Low grade infection should also be ruled out. At this point, it might be wise to back the drain out slowly. This is sometimes called, "converting the drain to a Penrose." It protects you, somewhat, from the possibility of a seroma (fluid collection)... more

Continued drainage after tummy tuck

In my experience over the last 30 years, one month seems to be a long time to have drains in place. BUT the amount of drainage can depend upon many factors: 1.The type of abdominoplasty,and surgical technique. 2.Was suction done and to what extent 3.Type of drains and post op care. 4.General health status 5.Previous abdominal operations 6. Use of compression garments post op. 7.Activity post op. Speak with your surgeon about your concerns and hopefully they'll come out soon. .... more

You should be close to or ready to take some of the drains out

At 4 weeks, your drainage should be substantially reduced and you should be able to take out the drains. On average, patients will have drains for 1-2 weeks after an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck). Sometimes, it can be up to 3 weeks and very rarely longer. I agree with Dr. Yuan. If your drainage is more than 30 cc per day per drain, then you can take one drain off suction and see if fluid accumulates in the other drain. At the least, you should be able to remove one drain. Then you will have... more