After surgery, the abdominal area is in a delicate state as the body begins the healing process. If there is a sudden increase in abdominal pressure related to anything from coughing, sneezing, vomiting due to nausea, or getting a case of the hiccups, the compression garment provides important protection in terms of stabilizing the area. It is also helpful with the edema (swelling) that always follows a surgery. It takes roughly three to six months for most of the swelling to go away so the garments are crucial during the first month after a procedure.

(Ironically, we don’t have any studies to back up the importance of compression garments after abdominal surgery because no patient would want to attempt not wearing them after a tummy tuck surgery. They are just good medical common sense.)

They should be very tight but it’s important to have the right kind of pressure. The kind of support we want is focused on the front and back of the abdominal area, not the sides. This means that a corset, which applies pressures from the sides, would be a very bad idea. We also want to avoid anything that uses wire. In our case, we provide an abdominal binder that the best type for providing post-operative protection. It should be worn as tightly as the patient can tolerate to provide the most protection and support.

Surgeons agree that they should be worn for four weeks after a tummy tuck procedure. If patients want to wear them longer, they can. It’s important to now, however, that garments worn after four weeks can create issues in some cases. If patients buy compression garments of their own, they must make sure that the surgeon examines them before they attempt to wear them.