Deann describes her experience with DIEP and the complications she had.

Transcript

I ended up with fat necrosis, probably a week to 10 days post-op(eration) and I know when I had my surgery… If you’re not familiar with a DIEP flap* (Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator Artery Flap), it’s a free flap. They use the tissue and blood vessels from your abdomen and it’s total a detachment but, my blood vessels in my abdomen were just kind of medium size, obviously the bigger the better, but mine weren’t. There was one area that the blood supply never, wasn’t really great to that area. When I had my reconstructive surgery, I had to end up having to have leech therapy for a week while I was in hospital to try to improve the blood supply. I didn’t have to go back to the OR (Operating Room) or anything but that area was…And then because of that, I ended up with a not really good contour. I’ve got some concave area there, so just like I said, I had surgery in February and now the surgeon told me, the plastic surgeon, he said “You may end up having to have more surgery.” I probably will end up having more surgery sometime in the fall.

* DIEP Flap: A section of the lower belly containing blood vessels, skin and fat is cut and used for breast reconstruction.

Interview: To try and improve the outlooks?

Yeah! Because basically like what it is, it’s like a liposuction. They just remove the fat and then they just transfer it. I was only off work for a couple of weeks with it. So it was not a big thing. You’re in and out the same day.

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