Hello Tarainpain-ga,
I?m sorry to hear you were a bit of pain after your surgery. Hopefully
you?re feeling better and we can shed some light on the subject of
your recovery. I started out with a great website about the different
types of liposuction.
http://www.lipoinfo.com/
On their site I found this information about the tumescent technique.
It seems to be one of the most widely used and minimally painful
methods of liposuction out there. There is no need for general
anesthesia which means less complications and recovery time. Some
patients get what?s referred to as ?twilight? which is a mild
relaxant.
?The tumescent technique utilizes large volumes of natural saline
(lightly salted water) solution, containing a precise amounts of a
very dilute local anesthetic (specifically and only lidocaine), and
adrenaline, which is dispersed into the fatty tissue. The injected
area then becomes locally anesthetized?"numbed."?
?After true tumescent liposuction surgery, many patients may get up
and walk out of the office without assistance. Most patients are
usually back to their regular routine in a couple of days. With the
tumescent technique, postoperative (after surgery) discomfort is
usually significantly reduced, since the local anesthesia remains in
the treated tissue, usually causing numbness that may last for sixteen
hours or more after surgery. Patients frequently require only Extra
Strength TylenolŪ or TylenolŪ with Codeine to control the relatively
minor discomfort that may occur after liposuction surgery performed
using the tumescent technique.?
http://www.lipoinfo.com/chap03.htm
From that info, it seems that most patients do not experience much
more than a mild discomfort after the liposuction. I see that you had
a large area liposuctioned, so I assume much of your body was sore,
but nothing compared to the more invasive procedures.
There are side effects to liposuction such as bruising, swelling,
temporary numbness, and discomfort. The tumescent technique usually
only requires Tylenol, Tylenol with Codeine, or another low dose pain
reliever to handle post surgery discomfort.
http://www.lipoinfo.com/chap13.htm
Tumescent surgery also carries the benefit of the anesthesia inside of
the injected solution, so ?the tumescent solution usually provides
about a day of continuing numbness in the suctioned areas so that
patients can move, do chores, etc. Movement and activity help to avoid
blood clot formation in the legs. All in all, the safety provided by
the tumescent method usually justifies most of the discomfort.?
http://www.lipoinfo.com/chap15.htm
That right there tells me that the nurses' expectations that you be
able to get out of bed, go to the bathroom, and move around by
yourself is not an unreasonable request for you after your
liposuction. It seems that most people do just fine at moving around
after the type of liposuction you had with minimal managed discomfort
with a mild pain reliever.
I checked some other sights online as well and it seems that this
information is echoed by many on tumescent liposuction. The below
information is from Dr. Melton?s practice in Chicago, Il.
?Immediately after tumescent liposuction, patients are able to get up
and walk around easily (We have never had anyone leave the office in a
wheelchair after liposuction). You will need to have someone else
drive you home, however. For the rest of that day, you will want to
take it easy and relax. But you are not confined to bed.
Most patients sleep very well the night after liposuction, probably
because it is relieving to have accomplished it.
The morning after there is usually some discomfort. Most patients say
that once they are up and about, this diminishes significantly.
Patients are routinely given a pain medication, but most do not need
it or use it.?
http://www.drmelton.com/Chicago/Liposuction/What_is_a_typical_recovery_aft/recovery_.html
Some information from Dr. Michael Bermant ? A Board Certified
Physician from the American Board of Plastic Surgery.
?most patients experience some discomfort that is usually easily
managed with some oral medication for a few days.?
http://www.plasticsurgery4u.com/faq/faq_tumescent_recovery.html
?When liposuction is done totally by local anesthesia, patients can
usually depart from the surgical facility within 30 minutes of the
completion of surgery. When general anesthesia is employed, then
patients usually require one to three hours of post-anesthesia
observation before being discharged home.?
http://www.liposuction.com/faqs/postop_recovery.php
?Many patients are able to walk out of the office without assistance
and get back to their regular routine within a few days. The sooner
the patient begins to move around, the faster the healing progresses.?
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=39551
Overall, I don?t think with the type of procedure you had done that
the nurse was unreasonable in expecting you to be able to get out of
bed and use the restroom with minimal help. Why they may have not had
the best ?bedside manner?, it seems that most patients are able to
even walk out of the recovery room and go home the same day. It?s also
very common to make sure a patient can use the restroom and ambulate
on their own, before discharge, without help. I had a major surgery
last June myself and while it hurt so badly I screamed and cried, I
was expected to get out of bed and use the restroom by my self before
I could come home. My nurses were verbally more supportive it sounds
like, but the idea was the same.
Google search used:
tumescent liposuction recovery
://www.google.com/search?q=tumescent+liposuction+recovery&hl=en&lr=&start=10&sa=N
I would think if you have any other concerns, please contact the Dr.
that performed your procedure or the aftercare clinic, but I don?t
think you were put at any risk by the actions taken. It may have been
uncomfortable, but it was the best thing for you to help speed up your
recovery. Tumescent liposuction is a generally mild procedure as far
as liposuction goes.
If this answer requires further explanation, please request
clarification before rating it, and I'll be happy to look into this
further.
Nenna-GA
Google Answers Researcher |
