After Exchange Surgery Do You Have to Wear a Bra?

It depends on the type of surgery you have. Some surgeons will recommend you wear a post-surgical bra while other surgeons may require dressings and tape or even a bandeau to maintain proper shape and positioning. It depends on your particular situation and desired outcome.

Whether or not a bra is necessary depends upon what is done during the exhange. For fold corrections or tightening of the pockets, I recommend for my patients to wear a bra 24/7 x 4 weeks followed by 2 weeks of daytime wear. As for nipple reconstruction, I don't think the bra impacts the reconstruction all that much. I use a protective plastic cover dressing which protects the reconstruction early on, however, a certain degree of contraction always occurs.

Once you are sevarl weeks out waering a bra should be for comfort.soemtimes you may need to wear it a little longer to supporrt your inframammary fold but as a rule after 6-8 weeks you should do fine.

Dgmlmax: IF I can paraphrase your question, "Is it necessary to wear bras after breast reconstruction?" Some physicians are draconian about cosmetic patients using underwire bras. Others are more laissez-faire-ist.  In my breast cancer reconstruction patients, most elect to wear conventional bras, instead of any specialty items, because it restores a sense of "normality" to their lives.  Many patients who were reconstructed prior to the era of skin sparing/nipple sparing mastectomies with Alloderm support have experienced implant displacement, as the size and weight of the implants needed to provide symmetry stretched the mastectomy flaps.  They are being revised with placement of Alloderm capsulorrhaphy/slings. 

Nipple reconstruction should not affect your need to wear a bra to conceal them.  Most nipples which are reconstructed with random flaps do not tend to be overly projecting.  Hope this helps.  good luck. 

I recommend a bra for a week or two after surgery just for comfort and protection.  If there is any reconstruction done that involves the inframammary fold, such as surgery to raise or recreate the crease under the breast or surgery to raise an implant then a bra is mandatory for at least four weeks, preferrably one that has underwire support.  In the absence of fold surgery the bra is worn only for patient comfort.