How Long After Breast Reduction Surgery Are Breasts Swollen?

Two weeks is very early after a breast reduction--you will certainly still have a lot of the expected and normal postoperative edema.  I typically tell patients that postoperative swelling resolves slowly; maybe 80% is resolved within 6-8 weeks, but the rest may take up to 6-8 months to resolve.  Be patient!

3 Dimensional studies of post operative patients show that it takes a whole year for swelling to subside. Stay In communication with your plastic surgeon.  Voice your concerns.  Give it time.  If you and your plastic surgeon agree that an adjustment is needed, a simple revision is possible.  Many size issues resolve with patience.  Patience is often rewarded with better than expected outcomes. But never fear, help is available if needed. 

Thank you for your question.
You may still have some swelling. Give it some time. Contact your surgeon with any questions or concerns. Best wishes!

Swelling is a normal part of the recovery process after breast reduction surgery, and it typically lasts for several weeks to months. At two weeks post-op, it’s still common to experience noticeable swelling, which can make the breasts appear larger than expected. In general, the majority of the swelling will subside within the first 4-6 weeks, but some residual swelling may persist for up to 3-4 months. It's important to be patient and allow time for the body to heal fully, as the final shape and size of the breasts will become more evident after about 3-6 months. I advise my patients to not buy lots of new bras until about 3 months since there may be some minor swelling (even 5-10%) at that period.
If you’re concerned that your breasts are still too large despite the swelling, it's worth waiting at least 3-6 months before reassessing. If, after the swelling has subsided, you’re still unhappy with the size, there are options such as revision surgery or additional tissue removal. Your surgeon will be the best person to guide you through the next steps, as it's essential to give the body time to heal and fully settle before making any decisions about further procedures.
Krishna Vyas, MD, PhD, MHS
Harvard, Hopkins, and Mayo Clinic Trained
Aesthetic Plastic Surgeon
New York, New York

Breast reduction recovery happens over 4 to 6 weeks after the surgery. As time goes on, you will see a steady decline in swelling. By week 6, the majority of your swelling should be gone. However, it can last up to 3-4 months. If your swelling persists longer than 4 months, you should talk to your surgeon about your concerns. Best of luck to you.

Hi there, this is a great question. At 2 weeks out, you are still very swollen. You probably aren’t going to see your final outcome for 2-3 months. After 2-3 months time, your size is pretty much going to be what it’s going to be. At that time you can assess whether you’re too big or too small.

A breast reduction operation will have post operative swelling in first few weeks. The patients are advised to use surgical bra regularly in initial few weeks. Swelling starts to improve from week 2 and continues to get better. By 6-8 weeks majority of the welling can be down but overall swelling takes unto 6 months to go down. Continued use of surgical bra is helpful in getting the swelling to go down.

You will wake up from your procedure and for the first few days your breasts will be swollen and tender. However, the vast majority of our patients tell us that they are not as sore as they thought they would be. We recommend you relax from daily responsibilities and arrange for extra help around the house for the first one to two weeks. For the first 4 weeks, it is still recommended you keep your level of activity light. You will still need to continue to wear your post-operative bra during this time. Avoid lifting >5kg and housework such as vacuuming, mopping, hanging washing on the line. Activities such as this will increase postop swelling and can potentially cause bleeding to occur. At six weeks, you wil have a good idea of your size and some women are able to shop for new bras at that time.
As time passes, you will notice the change in shape over the next few months you will be able to enjoy your new look.

The short answer to this question is three months. In general, two weeks is not enough time for swelling to resolve after any surgery.If for some reason, your breasts are still too big after reduction surgery, sometimes some excess tissue can be removed in the office under local (uncomfortable) or in the operating room (surgery.)  Or sometimes some liposuction can be done in the office under local. It is always easier to remove some extra tissue and very difficult to add tissue if the breasts are too small.

Hi. Thanks for posting your questions.
Given you are only 2 weeks post breast reduction surgery, there will still be a significant amount of swelling present in both breasts. At the 6 week mark, most of the swelling would have dissipated; however, I find that even between the 6 weeks and 6 months mark, the breast will continue to reduce in size to a variable degree, due to ongoing healing, fat atrophy, and internal scarring.
If your breasts are still too large for your preference after the 6 month mark, revisional surgery with further reduction can certainly be considered.
All the very best.
Dr Ray Goh 

At two weeks post-op you are most definitely still swollen to some degree so it is worth waiting for it all to settle and you will hopefully still be very happy with the result.  Your new breasts will also take some time getting used to so don't rush into anything.  However, if you were expecting to aim for a C-cup and are still a DD 2 weeks post-op you may well find that not all of this is due to swelling.  Whilst it can take up to three months to be able to judge the final outcome, it is important that you maintain contact with your doctor to monitor your results.  If you do end up being unhappy with your results longterm you would usually need to have the whole procedure redone with more tissue taken away.  This is clearly not a small undertaking so you should think about this very carefully and take appropriate advice from your surgeon.  Provided you still have confidence in your surgeon there are definite advantages to staying with the same person.  The most important one is that the risk of tissue loss including loss of the nipple/areola skin is a little higher in revision procedures.  This is much safer if the surgeon performing the revision procedure knows what was done in the initial operation.