Abdominal Lipo Waviness and Swelling Post-op 8 Weeks

Without of pre-op photos to compare, it is impossible to comment on your results.  Also, 8 weeks post surgery is early to start getting worried about results.  There will still be swelling that needs to resolve.  The best advice at this point is to wear a compressive garment that provides a nice event compression to the skin.  Also, if you sit all day for your job, you will get temporary grooves where your skin folds when you bend.  This will eventually resolve as the swelling goes away.

 

Good Luck with your recovery.

The
contour irregularity and waviness that you describe is commonly seen following
liposuction of the abdomen.These
findings are usually always related to postoperative swelling.Patients undergoing liposuction will
inevitably develop swelling following this procedure.During the procedure, the liposuction cannula
is passed through the subcutaneous tissue.This causes disruption of the lymphatic channels and cellular injury,
which causes swelling. Significant
improvement in swelling can be seen in the first three weeks following surgery,
with the majority gone in about three months.Small amounts of swelling may persist up to a year following surgery. We
generally recommend the use of compression support garments for about three
weeks following surgery.However, when
patients have prolonged swelling, we continue the compression garment for
longer periods of time.We also
recommend a low-salt diet before and after liposuction.Exercise and stretching is usually started
early in the postoperative period, and we want patients to ambulate as soon as
possible following surgery. Massage
is also helpful.It decreases swelling
by mobilizing retained fluid following liposuction.All of these steps help to minimize the
duration of swelling following surgery. In
your case, your swelling is normal and should resolve with time.Compression, massage, ambulation and low-salt
intake will hopefully help you get there sooner.

Bruising and swelling are normal in the suctioned areas and usually increase slightly after the removal of any tape or foam. The bruising will decrease over 3-4 weeks, but may last as long as 6 weeks. The majority of the swelling will be gone within the first 3-4 weeks. However it may take 6-9 months to disappear completely. The compression garment helps reduce the swelling, and the longer it is worn, the more quickly the process will proceed. As you heal, the suctioned area may feel “lumpy” and irregular. This, too, decreases with time, and massaging those areas will hasten their softening. VelaShape 3 can make this recovery process go faster and help shrink your skin at the same time.

You may need a reevaluation after three to six months to evaluate if more treatment is needed but until then it is not fair to evaluate and your surgeon will need to examine you to determine if more surgery should be done.

You are still relatively early on in your recovery from liposuction of your abdomen.

Don't forget that the empty spaces where the fat used to be quickly fill up with fluid; this fluid is replaced with scar tissue.

Scar tissue is typically at its lumpiest several months after surgery, and will shrink and soften over at least 6 months.

Try to resume all your normal activities. Make sure you keep in touch with your plastic surgeon and have him or her check on your healing.

All the best!

For anyone undergoing liposuction, it generally takes at least three months for all of the edema to settle down and the skin to retract.  There is so much trauma to the tissues with the entire process - infusing fluid into the tissues, removing the fat, and all, the postoperative swelling and fluid shifts.  This is why it is important to wear a compression garment for at least 3 months.  At that point, most of the changes should have occurred and you will have a better idea of where you are at.  I hope this helps.

Edema can delay your healing and will contribute to the waviness. Generally speakig, it takes about 2 months for most of the swelling to go away and up to 6 months to see the final results. Unfortunately, due to the edema, you will most likely need to wait a little longer. Follow your surgeon's instructions and wait it out. If there's no improvement by 6 months, please talk to your surgeon about it.

Thanks for posting great pics.  Yes you do have some residual waviness to your abdomen after lipo.  While it is still somewhat early I would expect that these should be resolving by now.  All all of the bruising and swelling to resolve and continue to message any "lumpy" areas for a least another month.  If you are still unhappy and have residual contour irregularities then you should talk to your PS about a revision.

At eight weeks post liposuction you are still swollen. You really have to give yourself some time to heal and for the swelling to come down before worrying about some irregularities. This may take 4-6 months minimum.

Thanks for posting a series of photos. I do agree you have residual waviness. It might improve over the next month but a minor revision with Smart Lipo + lipo would be my personal recommendation. Regards from MIAMI Dr. B