Breast Augmentation Q&A

92%

WORTH IT RATING

773 Reviews

Ask a Question

Breast Augmentationbefore & after photos

View Before and Afters

Average Breast Augmentation Cost: $6,200

Learn about Breast Augmentation

3,429 people and 894 doctors are talking about Breast Augmentation

Get Free Email Updates

Worried About Post-op Breast Augmentation Pain

asked 1 year ago by 7165 in TX
Latest answer by Leo Lapuerta, MD
Question viewed 1,298 times
Tags: age 35-44, Asian, pain, recovery

Hello.35years old asian mom. have 2 children. my surgery date is on 22/dec/2010. i am so worry about the pain after surgery, 17 this month i had hemorrhoidectomy.almost 5days no BM. i was dying. drank glance of water and stool softner did there job? but my rectum inside was so swollen with unbelievable pain. end it up (ER). got miracle ointment from medical art.for almost an hour, i was in hell.still hurts,, so now, i am so worry about breast surgery..(i choose armpit incision 600cc for both)

15 answers to Worried About Post-op Breast Augmentation Pain

VIDEO (click "more: below): Pain after breast implants and using exercise

Pain is a difficult condition to predict and therefore to manage. Surgical techniques may help to minimize pain. A variety of medications are available to treat it . Pain pumps may help for the first couple of days but generally diminish the pain by 20-30%. Blocks during the surgery may ease pain in the first 12 hours after surgery. Many believe that range of motion exercises immediately after surgery minimize pain from muscle spasm when implants are placed under the muscle. I have... more

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Pain after Breast augmentation

A hemroidectomy procedure is much more painful than a breast augmentation. Two to three days of narcotics are usually required after a breast augmentation. A 600 cc implant will be much mor painful than a 300cc implant and patients are more sore after an axillary approach than an inframammary approach so you will have more pain than the average brest augmentation. Remember also that pain is a subjective sensation and everyone has a different pain threshold. If you can handle a... more

Leo Lapuerta, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Breast and anal pain are different

Hemorrhoidectomy pain will be bad without doubt. Pain after a Breast Augmentation procedure should be much less. In your case you mention the trans-axillary incision and 600 cc implants. The size of your implants will make the pain much greater than a more modest size implant. The trans-axillary incision and this size implant are more difficult to get the correct position. You should discuss this procedure with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon .

Walter D. Gracia, MD
Arlington Plastic Surgeon

Breast augmentation recovery

Recovery after a breast augmentation shouldn't be horrible. In most cases, my patients only take narcotic pain medication for a few days. Don't compare breast augmentation recovery to recovery after any other surgery--that's like comparing apples and oranges. I am a little concerned, though, about your choice of 600cc implants. Those are HUGE, and may lead to skin stretching and implant palpability, wrinkling and rippling, and implant displacement. more

Carmen Kavali, MD
Atlanta Plastic Surgeon

Pain after Breast Augmentation

All surgical procedures result in a degree of discomfort. This is typically well-controlled with oral pain medication and sometimes muscle relaxers. Be tough, you can get through it like everyone else. Most of the discomfort is related to generalized pressure on the chest, and having to sleep on your back. The amount of pain one experiences is related more to individual differences in what someone tolerates more so than the nature of the breast augmentation. Constipation can be an... more

Hayley Brown MD
Henderson Plastic Surgeon

Post operative Breast augmentation pain

The pain response from surgery is different for every patient. It is this unpredictability which makes the management of pain difficult. Therefore, we deal in generalities. For a breast augmentation, in general it is a very well tolerated procedure. Some surgeons perform intercostal nerve blocks and others use pain pumps. However, postoperative narcotic pain pills are the standard treatment. I would suggest that you discuss this in depth with your surgeon so that they understand your... more

David Bogue, MD
Boca Raton Plastic Surgeon

Pain after breast implant surgery

Hemorrhoid surgery is notorious for being painful afterward. So painful in fact that the recommend you only sit on a hemorrhoid pillow. Breast augmentation surgery is quite different. The pain experienced afterward is dependent on whether the implant was placed over or under the muscle, the implant size, personal patient reactions to pain, physician surgical technique, use of muscle paralyzing agents during surgery (if implants placed under the muscle), etc. The best way for you to calm... more

Aaron Stone, MD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Pain control following breast augmentation

There are several methods that have been provided to you that help with post-operative pain control. Pain pumps might help but are expensive, marcaine in the pocket is very inexpensive and does help. Large implants (greater than 400cc) are more painful due to the stretching and tightness. An axillary incision and pocket dissection is more painful than an incision in the breast fold. Discuss all of these options with your surgeon and hopefully you can be as... more

Marcus L. Peterson, MD
Saint George Plastic Surgeon

Augmentation Pain

You really need to discuss with your chosen surgeon. We here on the internet can only alleviate your minor issues. You have a pain fear issue that needs attention to make the recovery as easy as possible.

Darryl J. Blinski, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

Breast augmentation pain

Please understand that the pain after an augmentation is much less than hemorrhoid surgery. It can be well managed with narcotics and muscle relaxants. However, the more anxious a patient is (YOU!!) the more pain you will feel especially with huge implants like 600's that will stretch your muscles substantially.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Pain after breast augmentation

Several thoughts on this subject: As you've seen in the responses there is no comparison to pain and recovery after hemorrhoid surgery. I find that doing the procedure with local anesthesia helps avoid postoperative pain problems and pain pumps aren't necessary but I do find that reported pain after the procedure is quite variable and I recommend a full week off with no responsibilities to recover. Adequate narcotic pain medication is appropriate during this week... more

Scott L. Replogle, MD
Denver Plastic Surgeon

Pain Pumps Can Answer Post-op Breast Aug Pain

Thanks for your question - There are several techniques that can be used to minimize post-op pain after a breast augmentation. In our San Francisco area practice, in addition to using pain pumps where appropriate, we also place Marcaine into each pocket with the implants. We have found this to be an easy way to make the first night much less painful. Talk to your plastic surgeon about options. I hope this helps.

Steven H. Williams, MD
San Francisco Plastic Surgeon

www.trivalleyplasticsurgery.com

Recovery after Breast Augmenation

Sorry to hear you had such a bad recovery from your hemorrhoidectomy. However, recovery from breast augmentation is much different. Most patients are okay to go out to dinner the next day and back to work after a few days. Good luck with your surgery.

David Shafer, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

www.ShaferPlasticSurgery.com

Pain control after breast augmentation

Pain fater breast augmentation can be controlled with pain pumps, infused local anesthetic just prior to closure, antispasmodics for the muscle, among other things. You should go over this carefully with your doctor. If you decide to take oral pain meds, you may want to start stool softeners before surgery.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Breast aug pain is manageable

There really is no comparison between the surgery you just had and breast augmentation. One option that might be helpful is an On-Q "pain pump" which automatically infuses numbing medication into the surgical site. I don't believe it can be placed with an armpit incision though, and keep in mind that 600cc is on the large side