traveling after surgery

[april24th2007]

Hello.  Can anyone tell me if its possible to travel 1-2 days after surgery?  I'm having it done at 10 am on Tuesday.  But my flight is on Wednesday at 9 pm.  So this gives me 35 hours of recovery time.  For any of you that have had gyne surgery, please let me know if this is alright so I don't make a mistake with booking my flight.  Thank you very much.

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

Yes it is possible but no it is not recommended.

In addition to your being just post-op, traveling might entail carrying bags, lifting items into the overhead bins, etc -- all not very good for you.

Dr Jacobs

[april24th2007]

Hello.  Can anyone tell me if its possible to travel 1-2 days after surgery?  I'm having it done at 10 am on Tuesday.  But my flight is on Wednesday at 9 pm.  So this gives me 35 hours of recovery time.  For any of you that have had gyne surgery, please let me know if this is alright so I don't make a mistake with booking my flight.  Also wether you are in a lot of pain after the operation? Thank you very much.

[DrBermant]

Hello.  Can anyone tell me if its possible to travel 1-2 days after surgery?  I'm having it done at 10 am on Tuesday.  But my flight is on Wednesday at 9 pm.  So this gives me 35 hours of recovery time.  For any of you that have had gyne surgery, please let me know if this is alright so I don't make a mistake with booking my flight.  Thank you very much.

This is a good question for your surgeon and should have been discussed before setting up an operation. Travel after surgery depends on the problem to be treated, what needs to be done, skill of the surgeon, and many other factors. For instance, drains are not easily managed from afar. Some surgeons use drains all the time. Travel with the drains, makes no sense to me. However, I rarely need drains for my patients. That is why almost all of my patients can travel the day after they have been examined after surgery. For most that is the day after surgery. Yet, I discuss before surgery about the potential drain issue with every patient as part of their basic education about this surgery.

Comfort after Gynecomastia Surgery is another factor. If a patient is in pain or on strong pain medication, travel can increase the chance of nausea / vomiting. Once a patient starts vomiting, then the pain can really kick in. General anesthesia can also take more than the next day before travel is comfortable.

These are but a few of the issues that should be part of basic patient education before an operation and why you should get them answered before making surgery arrangements.

Hope this helps,

Michael Bermant, MD
Learn More About Gynecomastia and Male Breast Reduction

[drdeadlift]

How much travel are we talking about? It's possible, but might be a bit uncomfortable to be honest mate.

I waited about 4-5 days before travelling home and even then I had my older brother doing all the lifting for me as it was uncomfortable.  

[kwl04]

I flew in for my surgery. There's no way you'll be able to lift any bags. I was told by my Dr. to not even carry a backpack. I bought a suitcase with wheels and put my bag in there. I had to have the person I was with carry everything.  You can wheel stuff around, but no way you can really lift anything.

I left 2 days after surgery.  I'd suggest bringing someone with you.

Good luck.

[april24th2007]

Thank you all for your input.  I really appreciate it.  Thanks.

[april24th2007]

Just wanted to update you guys because you gave your input.  I decided to wait 3 days post op before traveling back home.  I'm carrying a light suitcase with only some clothes and toiletries and a pair of shoes.

May I ask, how long you guys kept the vest on for day&night and just night after surgery?

When did you start drinking again.  For example a few glasses of wine post op say..after 1 week.  Is this ok?

And when is it alright to start doing push ups, bicep curls and shoulder presses?  A few weeks after surgery?

My surgery is gland excision only, not lipo.  Also my gland is very small, I'm 5'9" and only 134 lbs.  Its not very noticeable with t-shirt on, but topless its easy to spot.  It had been bothering me for a while and I finally decided to get rid of it.

I smoke 1/2 pack of cigarettes a day.  Would you recommend not smoking at all, or wearing nicotine patches and having nicotine gum post op?

Any input/comments you gentlemen can provide would be appreciated.  Thank you and I'm grateful for your feedback.  Please revert at your earliest convenience.

Thanks.

[kwl04]

I'll tell you what I think from my experience, but you need to do exactly what your Dr. says since he's the professional and we're the patients.

-You can ask the flight attendant to lift the bag in the overhead bin. Just tell her you had surgery and can't lift anything. They'll never know.
-I wore the vest ALL the time, only taking it off for showers. I'm just after my 4th week and I still wear my vest a lot. I do take it off for a few hours now to let my skin breath or if I'm going out.
-My Dr. said it was okay to start drinking whenever. I had a few beers about 2 weeks after surgery.  I didn't drink a lot because I don't imagine it would help you heal.
-You need to ask your Dr. when you can start working out. I started running again after 4 weeks, but I decided not to lift weights for 2 more weeks b/c I'm still a little tight in the chest area.
-My Dr. said to stop smoking (if you do), it makes sense.  I would stop if I were you.

Take it easy after surgery. Don't risk the outcome of your surgery!!! 

[gonnabhappy]

I am planning to take my surgery on Dec 15th and my travel is on Dec 26th. I am going through Lipo suction + excision mass. Sutures will be removed after 7 days on Dec 22nd. I checked with Dr. Ramachandran (Apollo Hospitals), he said I could lift my bag on my travel that is after 10 days.

Please advise whether it is recommended to travel after 10 days and lift a bag around 32 Kgs. What worst scenario could happen if I am lifting that much heavy bag.

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

The main concern after surgery is for too much stress, twist, torsion of the chest and chest muscles -- it is delicate healing tissues and you don't want to disturb the healing process.  Also, you could potentially open a blood vessel that was sealed during during and then bleed under the skin (a hematoma).  Much of this can be avoided by minimizing heavy lifting (and other strenuous activities) for at least several weeks after surgery.  While you could probably travel quite easily given ten days to recuperate, your 32 kg bag is much too heavy to lift -- get some help with others. (You could complain of a back injury which prevents heavy lifting).

Dr Jacobs

[gonnabhappy]

The main concern after surgery is for too much stress, twist, torsion of the chest and chest muscles -- it is delicate healing tissues and you don't want to disturb the healing process.  Also, you could potentially open a blood vessel that was sealed during during and then bleed under the skin (a hematoma).  Much of this can be avoided by minimizing heavy lifting (and other strenuous activities) for at least several weeks after surgery.  While you could probably travel quite easily given ten days to recuperate, your 32 kg bag is much too heavy to lift -- get some help with others. (You could complain of a back injury which prevents heavy lifting).

Dr Jacobs

Thanks Doctor