Bladder problems after tummy tuck Bladder problems after tummy tuck is a common problem and it can be very frustrating. The good news is that you are not alone, many people have had this experience and they have been able to resolve the issue. This article will discuss the causes of bladder problems after tummy tuck and some tips on how to prevent bladder leakage.
What causes bladder problems after a tummy tuck? The most common cause of bladder problems after a tummy tuck is scarring in the area between your belly button and pubic bone. This scarring can cause your urethra (the tube that carries urine out of your body) to become blocked or narrowed which leads to urinary incontinence (inability to control urination). There are several things that can cause this scarring including:
Infection: An infection in this area can cause scarring which will make it difficult for urine to flow through properly.
Trauma: Trauma such as an accident or surgery can also cause these scars which will lead to urinary incontinence as well.
Bladder problems after tummy tuck
Yes, you read the title right – tummy tucks can improve bladder control.
One of the little known and unexpected results of a tummy tuck can be improved bladder control.
If you are one of the millions of women worldwide who suffer from a weak bladder, whether from childbirth or aging, this article is for you.
If you sneeze, cough or laugh, and you feel a little leak, you’ll want to read how researchers discovered an unexpected link between bladder control and tummy tucks.
If you have ever found yourself crossing your legs tightly and squeezing hard in preparation for a cough, you might suffer from Stress Urinary Incontinence (SUI). This is a common bladder control problem, and you are not alone.
SUI is characterized by uncontrollable leakage of urine with some increased abdominal pressure. Physical activities such as coughing, sneezing, exercise and laughing can trigger leakage. Even women who’ve only given birth vaginally to one child can have this post-pregnancy condition.
While the joy of pregnancy and childbirth bring much love and joy, they also take a toll on a woman’s body. Pregnancy can stretch the abdominal muscles, specifically those around your bladder. While skin and abdominal muscles can bounce back for some, other women are left with loose skin, weak abdominal muscles and stress urinary incontinence.
The Tummy Tuck
Tummy tucks have been used by plastic surgeons for years to remove or tighten excess skin and repair and tighten abdominal muscles.
Recent studies have also uncovered some added benefits of tummy tuck surgery.
Findings from a study published in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal, the official clinical publication of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS), show that tummy tucks not only improve body contour, but they may also alleviate symptoms of stress urinary incontinence. This is especially true for patients who have not had a previous cesarean section.
In fact, these studies show that a tummy tuck can relieve or reduce stress urinary incontinence in nearly 60% of patients. These results are most prominent in women who’ve delivered children vaginally.
How Does a Tummy Tuck Help?
Tummy tuck surgery not only tightens abdominal muscles and loose skin on the abdomen, but it can also help tighten the soft tissues supporting the pelvic floor, bladder and urethra.
The result? Tension and pressure is placed along the passage from the bladder to the urethra. This helps keep it closed and prevent bladder leakage.
So, not only do patients benefit from tightened abdominal skin from their tummy tuck, they may also have some relief for their stress urinary incontinence.
Additional Help for SUI
You may also find some relief in other common treatments for stress urinary incontinence. Here are a few treatments for urinary leakage:
- Kegel exercises to strengthen pelvic floor muscles
- Weight loss
- Bladder Training
- Medication
- Wearing Pads
- Surgery
Each treatment has pros and cons and a range of effectiveness. You can try these treatments under the supervision of your doctor. While a tummy tuck isn’t a substitute for these treatments, the effects of the surgery on your bladder and urethra is a benefit for many patients.
More Tummy Tuck Benefits
For people who eat right and exercise, and for whom a flat, well-toned tummy is elusive, a tummy tuck can remove excess fat and skin on your abdomen and restore weakened or separated muscles.
What causes a loose sagging abdomen in otherwise healthy people? Causes include heredity, pregnancy, prior surgery, large weight fluctuations and congenital spine abnormalities.
Abdominal contouring can be done with a variety of techniques:
- If excess fat is combined with loose, sagging skin and tissue, your physician would perform a tummy tuck.
- If you have abdominal muscles that have weakened or separated due to pregnancy or severe weight fluctuation, your physician can correct this as part of a tummy tuck.
- If necessary, your physician can also combine a tummy tuck with liposuction.
- If localized fat is the problem, but overall skin tone is good and stretch marks are minimal, your physician can use liposuction to contour the abdomen.
Final Thoughts
Usually, stress urinary incontinence is treated without surgery. Many patients, however, require more care, and several studies have shown that a tummy tuck can aid in recovery, especially in patients who haven’t had a caesarian section.
During the tummy tuck surgery, surgeons can create a slight bladder obstruction using soft tissue near the pelvic area. This in turn reduces incontinence
Tummy tuck binder vs compression garment
Part of a successful recovery is wearing your tummy tuck compression garment, also known as a binder. Wear this as directed for a easier and faster recovery.
Atummy tuck compression garment is a heavily elasticized cloth that stretches around your mid-section, much like a girdle. It fits quite snugly, applying even and constant pressure on the encased area. The garment typically covers the area below your breasts down to the hips or pelvic area — everywhere that was treated during your tummy tuck, including the immediate surrounding area.
Why do I need to wear a compression garment after my tummy tuck? This is a question we often receive from patients. Because it fits so snugly, some patients find it rather uncomfortable to wear. However, you should know that you should wear it as advised. A compression garment can help a great deal in your recovery after abdominoplasty. Here are the top four reasons:
1. A reduced risk of seroma
Excess serous fluid collection filling a pocket under the skin is technically referred to as a seroma (when it is blood, it is known as a hematoma). Seromas are considered to be the most common complication associated with abdominoplasty according to several studies, including one from 2002 published in the Annals of Plastic Surgery. The constant, even pressure applied by your compression garment is designed to push down on tissues that were rearranged during your surgery, so that pockets where fluid could collect are minimized or eliminated. The garment also promotes circulation. These two reasons are believed to be how the incidence of seromas can be decreased.
2. Better circulation
And since we’re on the topic of circulation, we all know that keeping your blood going during your recovery is key to getting better, since it’s how beneficial nutrients are delivered to the treated areas to promote healing. This also reduces swelling, bruising and the risk of blood clots, which can be serious or even fatal.https://www.youtube.com/embed/_-ELNx0oYa4?rel=0
3. More comfort
Your compression garment helps keep tissues in place while you move around. Damaged tissues and incision lines are protected from being pulled or strained. That means you’ll feel more comfortable. In fact, some patients like to wear their garment for weeks after it’s okay for them to stop because they feel more comfortable with it on.
4. Better contouring
While great care is taken to tighten your mid-section and minimize any contour irregularities, there may still be a chance that uneven contours may appear. Many contour irregularities can become permanent if they’re not corrected early on in your recovery. A compression garment helps to flatten out any lumps and bumps that appear.
However, sometimes an ill fitting compression garment may leave permanent indentations. For example, seams can leave long lines in your skin. That’s why it’s important to make sure that your garment fits properly. If in doubt, let us know. Another option is to either wear your garment inside out if you can, or wear a seamless tight cotton shirt underneath your garment as a protective layer.–>
Having difficulty breathing?
We’ve had patients complain about having difficulty breathing while wearing their compression garment. While it should be snug, your garment should never prevent you from breathing properly. It should also not cause you any pain while you wear it. If it does, let us know as soon as possible so we can get you another one.
In some cases, patients find it difficult to breathe not because of the garment, but because they’re breathing unnaturally.
Breathing right
When you breathe, there are three parts of your body that are involved: the intercostals muscles, diaphragm and abdominal muscles.
The intercostals muscles are located between your ribs. When you breathe in, these muscles contract upwards and outwards to allow your lungs to expand with air. At the same time, your diaphragm moves downward toward your abdomen to create more space for the lungs as well. With proper and natural breathing, you’ll see your chest rise and widen while your stomach expand. It’s exactly how we breathed when we were younger.
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Don’t be discouraged, because it is possible to have a leaner body contour.
Belly breathing
As we become more sedentary, we start to get lazy with how we breathe. Instead of involving these three body parts with every breath, we only use our stomach. Your abdominal muscles expand and contract, but your chest doesn’t move. This is known as belly breathing, and it’s a habit that can lead to a bloated stomach that no dieting or tummy tuck can fix!
Belly breathing is why some patients may find it difficult to breathe while wearing their compression garment. They rely just on their stomach to bring in air, but their stomach can’t expand because of the pressure applied by their compression garment.
If this is true for you, take a moment to be conscious of how you breathe. Feel your rib cage expand with every breath, and your diaphragm and abdominal muscles will automatically work together at the same time.
Stage 1 tummy tuck compression garment
Fluid has to be expelled from your body after it undergoes cosmetic surgery such as:
- Liposuction.
- Tummy tuck.
- Breast augmentation, reduction or breast lift.
- Body lift or body contouring.
- Brazilian butt lift.
For this to be efficiently performed, you’ll need to wear recovery surgical compression garments. Recovery period is divided into two stages: stage 1 and stage 2 recovery.
Post-surgical compression garments for stage 1: why?
Your surgeon will do his or her best to expel the fluids during surgery, but they won’t be able to drain all of this body fluid during the procedure. Some of it will have to be drained out afterwards by putting on a post surgical compression garment, immediately after your surgery. This post surgery stage is referred to as the First Stage of Post-Operative Recovery.
About the first stage of post-operative recovery
During this stage, you’ll notice a considerable amount of swelling and bruising. The use of these Stage 1 post surgical compression garments will help you with these issues. They are designed to allow open drainage process so you can conveniently remove the excess fluid from your body after a liposuction, lifting, Tummy Tuck, breast augmentation or Brazilian butt lift.
Common features of a post surgical compression garment
Typically, a stage 1 post surgical compression garment is designed with zippers or eye and hook front or side closures. This helps to minimize friction and makes it easier for you to pull against tender skin and incisions. You’ll find several types of stage 1 post surgery garments specialized by surgery type. Among other things, you can find: surgical bras for breast implants or breast reduction, abdominal binders and Tummy Tuck compression garments, liposuction garments, arm lift compression sleeves, bodysuits for body sculpting (Liposculpture) or body lift, post surgical compression garments for butt lift, or compression vests for male pectoral implants or breast reduction.
When should you wear these Stage 1 post surgery garments?
Wearing these Stage 1 post surgery garments has to be done immediately after the surgery. You will then notice that the swelling and bruising will be reduced, which would also imply a shorter healing time.
How long you should wear a stage 1 post surgical compression garment?
Ideally, you should be wearing these post surgical compression garments for one to two weeks, or even longer depending on the type of plastic surgery you are undergoing. But it is always best to ask your plastic surgeon with regards to which type of surgical compression garments you should use, and the length of time you should put it on. If you experience any inconvenience, it is best to refrain from using your post surgical compression garment and to seek immediate assistance from your surgeon or physician.