My Incision is Bleeding A Little After Tummy Tuck - Is That Normal?

Question

I am 9 days post op. tummy tuck went well, dont have to take any pain meds anymore. In the front middle of the incision just above I have a discolor on the skin. I did call the Ps he had me push on the skin to see if it turned white and then back to color,which it did..and the skin was the same temp as everywhere . He advised that area can take longer to heal as it has slow circulation. As long as no infection , no temp it should be fine but will take longer to heal. It did have some blood ooze.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD · Answer

This appears to be in the central portion of the incision where the circulation is most compromised by the surgery. It sounds as if your surgeon is monitoring the situation and I would remain in close contact. Dried blood can be cleansed with peroxide but I would ask first.

Earl Stephenson, Jr., MD, DDS, MBA · Answer

It is not unusual to have some minor bleeding beneath the dressings and tape.  The thing that concerns me about your picture is that you have some redness around the tape.  This may represent an early sign of infection. I would schedule an appointment with your PS so that he/she can evaluate the area.

	Good Luck

	Dr. ES

Hayley Brown, MD, FACS · Answer

Some minor bloody drainage through incisions after surgery is quite common initially. However, I would definitely have this looked at by your plastic surgeon to make an accurate assessment of what is going on. You want to treat any incisional issues sooner rather than later to avoid more serious complications.

Steven Wallach, MD · Answer

If the skin has some bruising or bleeding this can be fairly normal early post-op. If the skin is having problems in terms of color as your surgeon had your press on to check, keep close tabs with your doctor.

Paul Gill, MD · Answer

The key to success after any surgical procedure is close postoperative followup. It is not uncommon to have oozing for several days from the incision, but it is important for your surgeon to ruleout an underlying blood collection. The redness around your incision could also represent an early infection or lack of blood flow to the incision. These are all reasons to closely followup with your plastic surgeon. Wish you a safe recovery!!

My Incision is Bleeding A Little After Tummy Tuck - Is That Normal?

Answers (5)