How soon can you fly after Smart Lipo?

Thank you for your question. Typically it is
best to wait at least 2-3 days before a flight. Your body will experience
minimal swelling as you are going through the healing process. It is important
to wear your compression garment as you will swell on the plane as well. Follow
up with your surgeon to make sure you are healing properly.

There are several important reasons why you need to be close to your surgeon after surgery.
First of all, you need to have someone stay with you for 24 hours after the procedure. There are many physiological changes that happen after tumescent liposuction. One of them is the risk for lidocaine toxicity. There have been fatalities after liposuction from patients who have stayed alone after the procedure. There are also fluid shifts where people's blood pressure can drop. This can happen for several days after the procedure, especially in high-volume liposuction cases. The third concern about flying immediately after surgery involves the risk of developing blood clots. Both surgery and flying are known risk factors for developing blood clots that can potentially break loose, go to your lungs and become fatal. While blood clots can happen at any time without provoked risk factors, which are slightly increased with surgery, this is especially true when general anesthesia is used. It's also true for flights longer than six hours. Flights less than six hours have shown to have little risk for developing blood clots.
An interesting article that was recently published showed that people who sit in the aisle sits have a lower chance of developing blood clots while flying. The belief is that people in the aisle seats have a higher tendency to stand up and stretch their legs.
Remember, when flying, it's generally a good idea to squeeze your calf muscles, get up and walk a little bit.
While liposuction is generally a very safe procedure, there are potentially serious complications with any surgery. Because of this, it's also important to be close to your surgeon so that they can take care of you should something go wrong.All surgeons like to feel like they are God's gift to Earth, and patients are justified in the flying long distances. There are certainly times where it's worth looking for the best talent.
I personally had surgery and traveled 600 miles. I stayed for nine days after the procedure. My wife was with me for the first four days.Best of luck,Mats Hagstrom, M.D.