Swelling After Bilateral Brachioplasty

Thank you for your question regarding swelling after a brachioplasty or arm lift.
Swelling is common, if not expected, after a brachioplasty or arm lift. There are several maneuvers that I employ to minimize upper extremity swelling or edema. I have my patients wear an ACE bandage from the fingers to the armpit for seven days. If there is no forearm swelling after seven days, I have my patients discontinue the ACE bandage from the fingers to the elbow, but continue wearing the ACE bandage from the elbow to the armpit for another seven days. If my patients continue to have swelling in the forearm after the first seven days, I have them continue wearing the ACE bandage from the fingers to the elbows. In addition, I have my patients keep their elbow straight and their hands elevated above their heart. This can be accomplished by placing two or three pillows underneath the elbows at all times. I also have patients open and close their hands 15 to 20 times an hour to minimize hand edema.
Once the arm incision is healed completely, arm compression is essential to minimize swelling and to help flatten the scar. To minimize scarring after a brachioplasty, I have my patients wear arm compression for 4 to 6 weeks. Therefore, swelling after a brachioplasty is expected. However, just to be safe, you should express your concerns to your board-certified plastic surgeon.
Good luck with your healing from your brachioplasty.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact my office.
Sincerely, Dr. Katzen

Recovery after body contouring surgery takes some time, typically 6 months for most of the swelling to resolve and over a year for the scars to mature. Brachioplasty is no exception. At 6 days after brachioplasty, you are still very early in your recovery. Swelling of the elbows can occur after brachioplasty in the early postoperative period. This should slowly decrease significantly in the first 6 weeks following surgery. If liposuction was used to help contour your arms, then you will typically experience even more swelling and this will also take time to resolve. Be sure to communicate your concerns with your surgeon and follow the postoperative instructions.

                  It’s
not unusual for patients to develop swelling following brachioplasty. The
swelling may occur for a variety of reasons, but is usually always transcient
in nature.

                  Occasionally,
patients develop localized unilateral swelling of the arm. When this occurs,
other causes should be considered including seroma and hematoma formation. When
these conditions occur, drainage is often indicated.



                  For
these reasons, it’s important that you discuss this problem with your plastic
surgeon so appropriate intervention can be undertaken if necessary. When this occurs results
are usually excellent, but failure to address these issues can result in
complications including wound breakdown.