Swollen areola 5 weeks post op - is this normal?

[gynothrow]

I had my gyno surgery done five weeks ago and my areola seems to be very swollen, with it cratering in the nipple area whenever I don't wear my vest (I'm advised by my surgeon that it's now only necessary to wear the vest 12 hours a day). I just wanted to know if this amount of swelling five weeks post op is normal and what I could do to improve the swelling. Thanks in advance!

[Miguel Delgado MD]

Five weeks is very early in the recovery process.  This is most likely normal swelling.  It really takes up to 2-3 months for the areola swelling to settle down.

[gynothrow]

Thanks Miguel, I appreciate you getting back to me! Hopefully the swelling will go down over the next couple of months  

[Dr. Schuster]

Yes, this amount of swelling is normal. It is also difficult to comment more without seeing your pre-op photos.