After a neck lift, is 12 to 19 days too soon to begin massage? What is the expected end result of this massage? (Photos)

Question

I had a neck lift along with a facelift and upper and lower blepharoplasty 19 days ago. At day 12 my surgeon told me to start massaging my neck left to right right to left. It was very painful and my neck swelled quite a lot. Now I am at 19 days and this still makes my neck swell. My doctor had me massaging the scars on my eyes at 12 days which turned out to not be such a great idea. Thus far, it feels like an even worse idea for my neck.

Raffy Karamanoukian, MD, FACS · Answer

Plastic surgery scars require attention after surgery so that they remain cosmetically-appealing and barely noticeable. In our office, we use a protocol for scars that minimizes their activity in the 6-8 weeks after surgery. If you have late plastic surgery scars, you may also require laser and RF therapy to help reduce the longterm effects of the scarring. Keloids, hypertrophic scars, widened scars, red scars, and hyperpigmented scars all require scar modulation with topical creams followed by lasers and RF therapy. Topical skincare should be directed to a specific need, whether for pigmentation or hypertrophy and our office can guide you through the process to obtain the correct Plato’s Scar cream or Melarase cream for hypertrophy and discoloration. In terms of lasers, we would employ the vbeam laser for redness, Venus Viva RF, PRP microneedling, chemical peels, and Morpheus 8, fractional erbium, or fractional co2. All of these have their individual benefits. Most of all, we recommend you visit a solid plastic surgeon who understands surgical scar revision, laser therapy, and RF therapy for scars. 
 
Best, 
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon

Nelson Castillo, MD · Answer

Thank you for sharing your question and photographs and congratulations on your procedure!  Massages after surgery are thought useful in order to evenly distribute any tissue swelling so that the body absorbs it faster.  In most cases I do not advocate for this as it can be painful, lead to an increase in swelling, and may predispose you to bleeding (especially in the first two weeks after surgery).  I would contact your surgeon and inform them of your issues, they can then make the best decision for your recovery.  Best wishes.

After a neck lift, is 12 to 19 days too soon to begin massage? What is the expected end result of this massage? (Photos)

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After a neck lift, is 12 to 19 days too soon to begin massage? What is the expected end result of this massage? (Photos)

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Everything you need to know about Neck Lift

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.