1 year post-op my abdomen is bloated. How can I get the swelling to decrease? Do I have fluid retention or third spacing?

Question

I had one treatment of cool sculpting done one year ago on my upper and lower abdomen. The doctor used the large applicator. I saw minimal results after six months. After nine months my upper and lower abdomen became bloated and swollen. One year later, my stomach has swelling and bloated. I was not told to wear a compression garment after the procedure. Could I be experiencing fluid retention or third spacing?

Laura L. Machado, MD, FACS, FASMBS · Answer

This does not sound like a Coolsculpting side effect, I would recommend you make an appointment with your Primary Care Physician to explore the causes.

Tonya Boudreaux, MD · Answer

Hello and thank you for your question. I’m sorry to hear you are experiencing some swelling following your CoolSculpting treatment. Swelling can be a normal side effect from CoolSculpting, although it tends to go away on its own after a few days or weeks at most. At one year post-op, you should not be experiencing any residual side effects from your treatment. It is possible that your symptoms may not be linked to your CoolSculpting treatment, but you should contact your doctor just in case.

Before moving forward with any other body contouring treatments, always be sure that your provider is CoolSculpting certified. Hope this helps!

Before moving forward with any other body contouring treatments, always be sure that your provider is CoolSculpting certified. Hope this helps!

Tianna Tsitsis, MD · Answer

It is not typical to see bloating and swelling happen an entire year after 1 treatment of CoolSculpting.  I would recommend you see your primary care provider and look for other causes of this as I do not believe it has anything to do with your CoolSculpting.

1 year post-op my abdomen is bloated. How can I get the swelling to decrease? Do I have fluid retention or third spacing?

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Answers (3)

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