I have pain in left collarbone/shoulder 2 weeks PO TT with lipo. Should I be alarmed?

Question

I am 15 days PO from a TT with lipo. I have been experiencing sporadic bouts of pain in my left collarbone/shoulder region, that can get pretty intense and then resolved as quickly as it appeared. I have had 2 c-sections and experienced the same kind of pain under my collarbone(in which the maternity nurses explained this was not unusual and is caused by having and opened abdominal cavity) , but those instances resolved within a day or so PO. So my question is should I be alarmed?

John Nguyen, MD, FACS · Answer

Dear Reader,Your symptoms may be due to referred pain after the surgery or due to positioning during surgery.  Best to check with your surgeon.  Good luck and be safe.John T. Nguyen, MD, FACS, FICSDouble Board Certified Plastic SurgeonAmerican Board of Plastic SurgeryAmerican Board of Surgery

Paul Fortes, MD · Answer

Thanks for your question and congratulations on completing your
surgery.  It is not really common to have
pain in the collarbone and shoulder area from a tummy tuck.  In a tummy tuck, you do not open the
abdominal cavity so there really should not be any diaphragmatic irritation
that can refer to that area.  Tummy tuck
and liposuction procedures are all done in the skin and fat only.  I would definitely follow up with your
Plastic Surgeon to see what could be going on. 
Best of luck.

Vasdev Rai, MD · Answer

This pain needs to be investigated right away. Sometimes it can be indicative of serious issues such as pulmonary embolism. Call your surgeon.

I have pain in left collarbone/shoulder 2 weeks PO TT with lipo. Should I be alarmed?

Answers (3)