2 weeks post op Tummy Tuck, my belly is hard and shooting pain into the thighs. Is this normal?

Question

Ok I'm only 2 weeks 1 day post up. I had a full tummy tuck. Lipo to my back lower back and some body contouring. My belly still feels very tight of course but on the right side next to my belly button and under and a little on the left side I am very hard. I was told to just massage it for now that I'm still swollen and my tissue needs to be broken up a little. Also ever since surgery I got shootin pain on my left thigh on the side. It has never been more swollen than the right it mainly hurts when I walk the pain on my thigh is a shootin pain I get with certain steps it hurts more than anything else. I was told it coukd just be my nerves. Or that they are trying to repair themselves. Can I get any advice on this please.

Jed H. Horowitz, MD, FACS · Answer

Healing after tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) and liposuctionThis is relatively early healing but hopefully you are being seen and evaluated by your plastic surgeon.Pain can be from the lipo,  swelling,  tightness of the muscles.You should be seen by your doctor

Lori H. Saltz, MD (retired) · Answer

Two weeks after surgery may seem like a lot, but after a tummy tuck this is just the beginning of your recovery.  The firm spot you feel is most likely what we call induration or hard swelling and will go away with massage and time as you were told.  Your tissues are tight with swelling and because they were pulled tight, but as the swelling goes down and the skin soften in response to the tension you will be comfortably flat.  It will take months for all the swelling to go away and it will be a year at least before you see your end result so you have to be patient.  The pain in your thigh sounds like a condition called meralgia.  It is a sort of temporary nerve injury or "disturbance" if you will of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve that it runs medial (toward the center of your abdomen) to  your hip bone. I have actually never.heard of it being cut, but it can be irritated.  When it is, it cause those pains you're feeling down the thigh.  It can also cause numbness.  It usually goes away on its own, but I have had maybe two patients in 25 years where it has been uncomfortable enough that I have injected a little local anesthesia mixed with steroids next to the hip bone and that has solved the problem.  The steroids help inflammation and the local numbs the nerve for awhile to give you relief.  Ask your surgeon about this.  It sounds like you are on a course to a good result.  You just have to take each day as it comes.  Be sure to keep your follow up appointments and follow your surgeon's instructions.  He/she has the benefit of being able to actually examine you.

2 weeks post op Tummy Tuck, my belly is hard and shooting pain into the thighs. Is this normal?

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2 weeks post op Tummy Tuck, my belly is hard and shooting pain into the thighs. Is this normal?

Answers (2)

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Everything you need to know about Tummy Tuck

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.