“Does it take a while to heal from abdominal surgery?”
My mom just received abdominal surgery and is at home with us now, recovering. Does it usually take a while to heal from abdominal surgery?
6 Answers
It depends if she is obese, diabetic or anemic, then it takes longer to heal.
Dr. David Carlson
Surgeon
The short answer is yes. If she has an incision it’s just going to take a time for that to heal and for the discomfort to resolve. It depends on the type of surgery, the link to the incision, the size of the patient, and other cool morbidities.
Depending on the type of surgery, if it was laparoscopic surgery versus open surgery the duration of healing is different open surgery requires about six weeks before you’re fully recovered,laparoscopic surgery recovery time is a little faster but I wouldn’t push much more until you reach the six week term.
Yes it does. Those abdominal muscles really cannot be rested. We use them constantly, ouch. I could write so much that you would be bored to tears.
This is what I tell my patients. Every day you will notice a leap forward. You will get tired very easily and lose weight. There is nothing that you can do to reverse these. Eat, drink and sleep as much as your body needs. If you are not hungry that is okay. Stay hydrated! This generally resolves in about 6 to 8 weeks. Complete healing is a one year process.
This is what I tell my patients. Every day you will notice a leap forward. You will get tired very easily and lose weight. There is nothing that you can do to reverse these. Eat, drink and sleep as much as your body needs. If you are not hungry that is okay. Stay hydrated! This generally resolves in about 6 to 8 weeks. Complete healing is a one year process.
It depends on what kind of surgery she had. Recovery is general 2-6 weeks for most surgeries. Full recovery includes return of appetite, energy, and pain resolution. For some people, that can take 3-6 months. The larger the operation, the longer the recovery.
One to two years to completely heal maximum strength scar, but the scar will never be as strong as the tissue was originally. 1-2 months post-op, you’re pretty much good to exercise, work, etc.
