How long after BBL surgery can I stop worrying about possible complications like fat embolisms, hematoma and necrosis?

The healing process after a BBL can vary depending on your overall health and the extent of the surgery. In general, it takes about 6-8 weeks for the swelling to go down and for the incisions to heal.Most people are able to return to work and other normal activities within a few weeks.
Serious complications such as fat embolism after a BBL occurs soon after the procedure. In most cases, they begin within 48 hours after surgery, but they may also develop right after the surgery. I recommend you discuss these possible complications with your surgeon before your surgery in detail. Good luck with your operation.

Hi! I want to first say that educating yourself in the possible complications after any procedure is the best way to avoid/prevent them as much as possible, and you're doing a great job at it ;) The complications that you are mentioning are usually seen within the first few hours - 1 week after surgery. Especially fat embolism is a complication usually seen in the first 24-48hrs after the procedure. To really decrease this complication, I advise you go to a surgeon that specializes in BBL procedures and performs the transfer using ultrasound guidance. Best of luck!

Dear NavyBlue1308,
I understand your concern. It is best that you consult your plastic surgeon regarding post operative care and management (i.e including massage techniques and timing) specific to your case. Your surgeon knows your condition well and has preferences on when and what to use for faster healing and recovery. Post operative care and management depends on the type of surgery performed and the technique used during surgery among other factors.It is best, however, that you follow your plastic surgeon's advice on post operative care management for a smooth and faster healing and recovery.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

Those complications that you mention are immediate, that is, they can happen in the first days of the surgery. after that week you don't have to worry about those complications you say. There are others, it is best that you choose a good doctor who guarantees no complications.

Did you have an in person consultation?
Did you have multiple in person consultations vetting each plastic surgeon and comparing outcomes?
If the answer to those questions is no then I suggest you start the process from the beginning.
A thorough and in person consultation should have included the discussion of complications including what each complication is and how it’s managed.
If you’ve had consultations but I feel like there were questions that were not answered then you should follow up and have a follow up visit, preop visit or a second consultation with your provider
You should not feel uninformed going into this operation
Delivering consistent quality liposuction and fat transfer results is more difficult than most people believe.
The number of providers who do these procedures well it is relatively few.
Results are permanent and irreversible.
It is imperative patient properly vet providers comparing outcomes among different surgeons and choose the most talented and experience provider.
Personally I do not believe this is possible doing virtual consultations.
During each in person consultation ask each provider to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of before and after pictures.
Make sure they only show you pictures that are similar to your body characteristics.
Take notes about the thoroughness of each consultation including all aspects of the consultation including the discussion of risks benefits their incidences and how they are managed.
This should’ve been discussed with you before you scheduled surgery.
Most serious life-threatening complications present themselves within the first week or less.Fat embolism‘s will present within hours today’s and infections typically show 3 to 5 days after surgery. delayed infections are possible and after this procedure it’s possible to get an infection several weeks after the procedure
All patients having fed transfer will have fat necrosis. This is simply part of the procedure
Fat necrosis to the point of it being an issue is an example of poor surgical technique.
Symptomatic fat necrosis does not happen if the procedure is done correctly
In reality serious medical complications are exceedingly rare for this procedure though patients seem to worry a lot about them.
Disfigurement is far far more common and in the end it’s probably something much more worthy of being worried about.
I cannot emphasize enough the importance of properly vetting plastic surgeons and your selection process
I highly recommend people avoid traveling long distances for elective surgical procedures and highly recommend having multiple in person consultations well in advance of scheduling surgery.
Best,
Mats Hagstrom MD