Natural evolution of seroma in abdominoplasty.

[BACKGROUND] Abdominoplasty is one of the most performed aesthetic surgical procedures, and seroma is a common local complication. The aim of this study was to investigate the beginning of seroma formation after abdominoplasty and its progression.

[METHODS] Twenty-one female patients underwent standard abdominoplasty. To investigate seroma formation, abdominal ultrasound was performed in five regions of the abdominal wall (i.e., epigastric, umbilical, hypogastric, right iliac fossa, and left iliac fossa regions) at five different time points: postoperative days 4, 11, 18, 25, and 32.

[RESULTS] The incidence of seroma was 4.8 percent on postoperative day 4, 38.1 percent on postoperative day 11, 33.3 percent on postoperative day 18, 23.8 percent on postoperative day 25, and 19 percent on postoperative day 32. The left iliac fossa region had the highest relative volume of fluid collection on postoperative day 4, as did both the right iliac fossa and left iliac fossa regions on postoperative day 11. At other time points, the relative volume of fluid collection was significantly higher in the right iliac fossa region.

[CONCLUSION] The highest incidence of seroma occurred on postoperative day 11, and the iliac fossae were the most common locations of seroma.