General Information

Wear support garment continually for 3 weeks or until all bruising is gone, wear them longer, if you wish. You may remove them to shower or go to the bathroom.

If there is oozing of blood onto the dressings, place maxi-pads under the garment over that area. If there is excessive oozing or if there is extreme pain and/or swelling with the oozing, call us.

Drink 1 quart of regular soda pop (not diet), Gatorade, or juice within the first few hours after surgery. Then drink 1-3 quarts per day for 2 days.

Rest in bed quietly for the rest of your surgery day. You may be out of bed the next day, but be gentle with yourself.

Medication
Take your pain medication for pain. Take Tylenol for discomfort.
Take antibiotics (Keflex) 4 times a day until they are finished
NO ASPIRIN for 1 week following surgery.
Your pain medication may cause constipation, you may use milk of magnesia or stool softener, should this occur.

Calls
We will call you the night of surgery to check your progress.
General information calls should be carried out during regular office hours. (M-F 9:00 am to 5:00 pm)
Emergency calls - after hours - you may call anytime! The concerns we need to know about include:

abundant bleeding
increased swelling - more on one side than the other
temperature over 101 degrees.

Helpful Hints
The first 3 or 4 days are usually the most uncomfortable. You may need to take pain medication to be comfortable during this time.

It takes anywhere from 3-6 weeks for bruising to disappear and 6-8 weeks for most of the swelling to resolve.

Be careful how you sit, roll over in bed and go to the bathroom. "Let comfort be your guide" Walking is fine and encouraged.
No jogging for the first 2 weeks. Try not to engage in any activities whereby you will be struck on the operative area.

Ankle swelling is common following liposuction of hips or legs and not cause for alarm. Elevate your legs while in bed with several pillows.

Usually for the first week you can’t see much change in contour. By the end of the sixth week, the new contour becomes more and more apparent. Don’t be discouraged, this takes time!

The disappearance of the soreness and the bruised areas can often be hastened by the use of heating pads on a low setting, or hot Turkish towels and massage. You must wait 1 week before doing this. Jacuzzi’s and hot tubs are wonderfully soothing.
During the 3rd or 4th post-operative week, some areas may get firm and lumpy. These will become softer and the lumpiness will improve in the following weeks.

Please pass along to us anything you may have found helpful!