When Can I Go on a Sunbed After a Breast Implant?

Hi and thank you for your question.Your incisions need to be healed before going in a sunbed and you must keep the scars covered for a year to avoid hyperpigmentation or darkening of the scars. Best of luck!

Sun exposure i.e. ultraviolet light has a negative effect on scar healing and can cause hyper-pigmentation of the healing scar. However this will not be an issue if you have your scar covered, either with your swimsuit or concealed with steristrips. Use of a sunscreen cream is however recommended at all times with sunbathing.
Hope this helps,
Ali Rıza Öreroğlu, MD FEBOPRASEuropean and Turkish Board Certified Aesthetic, Plastic and Reconstructive SurgeonIstanbul, Turkey

Keep the sun away from scars is your best bet. Scars behave differently in different people and can become too dark permanently (hyperpigmentation or dyschromia) if exposed to the sun.  Better to spray tan if you want to hide it. Definitely use a strong SPF (>30) sunscreen on it even though it is hidden by your bathing suit as some sun goes through the fabric.

It’s
important to avoid sun exposure and tanning beds following cosmetic surgery for
several reasons.Tanning beds can
adversely impact wound healing and result in unfavorable scarring.In addition, patients can suffer severe
sunburns because of numbness in the involved areas.We generally recommend avoiding sun
exposure or tanning beds for a minimum of six weeks following surgery.After six weeks, it’s important to use a sun
screen with both UVA and UVB protection.In general terms, tanning beds have a potential negative impact on the
quality of the skin and the potential for developing skin cancers.For this reason, we generally recommend that
they should be avoided.

Sunbeds have been proven to cause skin cancer so I would not use a sunbed period.  If you don't mind getting skin cancer and are just concerned about how the sunbed will affect the results and scars, I would recommend you use sunscreen on the surgical scars up to a year following surgery until the scars have completely matured and are no longer red, raised or firm.  Best wishes.

Hello! Thank you for your question! After any surgical procedure, you should be careful with incisions as well as avoidance of direct UVA and UVB rays in order to lessen the chance for hyperpigmentation of the skin and scars, which can take several months to resolve, if it ever does. Sunblock is recommended regardless. The ability of the affected area to heal has been slowed and you should try to avoid additional swelling to the area. The area will likely be numb for several weeks to months and will be difficult to feel when sunburn is coming on. Typical recommendations include wearing a hat and/or sunblock to the affected area for at least 6-12 weeks following the procedure. It takes up to one year for scars to fully mature. You should also avoid trauma to the area for several months to protect the refinements made during the procedure. Also, avoidance of pools/lakes/jacuzzis/etc for 4-6 weeks is usually recommended to allow adequate healing and protection from stagnant water, that could potentially harbor bacteria. Lifting/exercise restrictions are common for at least 7 weeks. Certainly discuss the postoperative instructions with your surgeon, as thoughts differ among surgeons. Hope that this helps! Best wishes!

Until your scars have fully matured (6-12 months), any form of ultraviolet energy can turn scars brown (and unlike tanned skin, this brown scar discoloration does NOT fade over time).

I know you don't want to burn on holiday, but tanning before you go is a bit like taking small doses of rat poison daily so when you take a big dose of rat poison it won't kill you! Ultraviolet energy causes skin cancer, wrinkles, and causes the pigmentation issues with "not-yet-mature" scars discussed above.

Don't get me wrong--I like the "bronzed beauty" look as much as you do, but the way to do this SAFELY is with mist or spray tans that give you the color you want, and then the highest SPF sunblock that you can find that your skin tolerates.

That way you can not only have that beautiful "tanned look," but you will protect your skin (and your scars) from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation! And not just on vacation, but always. You will thank me for this advice in another decade or two!

(BTW, I know you need sun for Vitamin D synthesis; 15 minutes a day is sufficient for all the Vitamin D you need. Or, you can just take a daily multi-vitamin or drink a glass of milk, which has Vitamin D included!)

Hi there, thanks for posting your question. It is important to wait until your incisions are completely healed before using a sunbed. Also, once you do, you need to cover your scars. Best to you. -Dr. Coan

Thank you for the question.

I doubt you will like my answer  but asking when you can expose yourself to potentially skin cancer causing ultraviolet light is like asking a physician when you can resume smoking.  The answer to both in my opinion would be:  never.

Otherwise, you may have to run the question by your plastic surgeon who may feel otherwise.

Best wishes.

As a plastic surgeon who treats skin cancer on a daily basis, my answer is that no exposure, whether artificial or natural sun, is a good thing. If you are inquiring as to when a surgical scar can be exposed to sun in the postop period, i caution for use of sunscreen during the entire year after any surgery.