My 8 year old daughter had her surgery a couple of weeks ago.  She wears glasses and we had them adjusted to not put pressure on her incision area.  I was wondering about using swim goggles (and a snorkeling mask for our vacation) and whether we have to be concerned about pressure around the incision area.  Has anyone had problems using swim goggles after their surgery?  How long should we wait before trying to use swim goggles?

My son had surgery in 2011 and his glasses also had to be adjusted for quite a while, a couple of months actually. . Swim goggles fit pretty tight so i would be concerned about my child wearing them. My sons head may not have looked swollen, but it still was for a month or two (if not more) after surgery. I would contact her surgeon with these questions just to be safe. Have a great vacation!

Not being a child but an adult when I had the bypass on my left side. I went 6 months with out the arm on the left side of my glasses, and was told not to put pressure or lay on that side. It is more for the fact that if you apply pressure to the bypassed new vein you could cut of the blood supply and actually stop the vein from doing its job of helping to not only bring blood to the area but help build new vessels off that transplanted vein.

Talk to your surgeon before you do anything. He or she may even say that your child cannot swim yet.

The surgeon said she will be able to snorkel 1 month after surgery.  We asked many times and he said the same thing.  We're obviously still concerned.  That's why we are asking if any others had any experience with this.

Hi Steve

Luca had surgery at 1 and is now 5. She's been swimming with goggles for about 3 years without issue. We are, however, very conscious of the pressure it might be exerting on her surgery sight and try to make them as loose as possible. In your case, it's very soon after surgery and I personally wouldn't exert any unnecessary pressure in the area for a while still.

Cheers
Mark (Luca's Dad)