Best Remedy for Swelling After Tumescent Liposuction?

The best remedy for post-liposuction swelling is far and away the compression garment that your surgeon will have provided you after surgery. The garment has 2 main purposes, and for both of these reasons I personally have my liposuction patients wear the garment 24/7 except to shower for 4 weeks post op:1.) Controlling swelling: the compression on your tissues helps your body to reabsorb the edema fluid that accumulates in the tissues after any procedure. This can take quite some time to happen without help from the compression garments2.) Improving contour: the compression helps to keep the tissues adherent to the underlying structures while healing, this can help prevent the wrinkled skin appearance that can happen when the tissues heal in ways we don't want them to.

After liposuction there is a period of weeks to months that the swelling can be improved with 24 hour per day compression.

We always use foam pads (epifoam) on all the suctioned areas along with a compression garment.This mnimizes swelling and bruising.  The garment is worn for 3 days, then the patient can shower and replace the foam pad and garment.  With the pad and garment, swelling is greatly diminished and after a week, the garment alone is worn for another week or two.Swelling is normal, but is resolves better if compression is used with pads during the first week. It takes about 2-3 months for the treated area to stop swelling with activity, and for it to become soft.

Thank you for your question! Wearing your postoperative compression garment after surgery will definitely help manage your swelling. Lymphatic massage also helps swelling go down more quickly. Lymphatic massage is a very light stroking of the skin (so it's not painful, even right after surgery!) that helps the extra fluid drain into your lymphatic system. Your surgeon's office may offer it, or you can look for a massage therapist or physical therapist familiar with the technique. 

Bruising and swelling are normal in the suctioned areas and usually increase slightly after the removal of any tape or foam. The bruising will decrease over 3-4 weeks, but may last as long as 6 weeks. The majority of the swelling will be gone within the first 3-4 weeks. However it may take 6-9 months to disappear completely. The compression garment helps reduce the swelling, and the longer it is worn, the more quickly the process will proceed. Other helpful hints include a low salt diet, and lots of walking.