drains

[john20to]

ok..so im kinda concerned about the "drains".

Do all patients have to have drains?  How long do u have to wait before they are removed post-op? Does it hurt to remove them? can u remove them yourself at home?

[omega]

i didnt have any drains. so i guess not all:P

[Maddog78]

I just has surgery yesterday and had drains put in.  I asked the doc why they were necessary.  He said when lipo was done, removing that fat causes fluid build-up in the chest area.  Also, he said drains help with the contour of the chest.  Drains are a pain in the a$$ for 2 reasons.  First, the areas where the drain enters the body hurts at times (usually due to movement).  Second, the bulbs the fluid goes into are bulky and hard to disguise.  I am susposed to have mine taken out on the 10th of Sept, but I am going to call Tuesday and see if I can get them out.  I am draining less than 10 out of each side within 8-10 hours.  Never drained more than 10cc.  At the end of the day, go with what your doc says.

[Saturn]

I had drains, and they were removed two days after my surgery.  They didn't hurt.  It was cumbersome having them, but that was pretty much it.  Someone posted once that it was painful to have them removed.  When it was time to have mine removed, I was expecting the worse.  For me, it didn't hurt....just a quick little pinch. 

[DrBermant]

ok..so im kinda concerned about the "drains".

Do all patients have to have drains?  How long do u have to wait before they are removed post-op? Does it hurt to remove them? can u remove them yourself at home?

The need for drains or how much comes out depends on the problem to be treated, skill of the surgeon, method(s) of surgery, and other factors.  I prefer techniques that minimize the need for drains or draining fluid with needles.  Not needing drains is one of the many factors that permits my patients the comfort after gynecomastia surgery that seems to need only Tylenol for most of my patients. Some take a few stronger pain medications, but optimizing comfort, minimizing swelling and bruising and not needing drains are among the factors that can influence results. 

Even the best techniques for removing a drain is not as comfortable as not needing a drain in the first place.  My use of drains or needing to drain fluid is less than 1% with my Gynecomastia Male Chest Sculpture Dynamic Technique.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia and Chest Sculpture