Abdominoplasty

A smooth flat tummy denotes a healthy person. A person who is self-conscious about their tummy can find a tummy tuck to be very rewarding for their self-esteem. Candidates for abdominoplasty are men or women who have had significant weight gain or weight loss, causing the skin of the lower abdomen to become stretched.

Abdominoplasty -tummy tuck- is a surgical procedure to improve the appearance of the abdomen by the removal of lax skin, stretch marks, and fat from the lower abdomen to give a smooth firm contour to the tummy. Fat pads of the upper abdomen, waist, and lateral hips are reduced with liposuction during the procedure if needed.

When there is moderate skin laxity of the lower abdomen only, a mini abdominoplasty with or without some liposuction will produce a smooth tummy.

Liposuction alone is an effective way of contouring the abdomen if the patient has good skin elasticity.

The Surgery

We have a beautiful, modern fully certified surgical suite as part of our practice, called T.A.S.I. Surgery Center. We work with a few select board certified anesthesiologists who are experts at outpatient surgical anesthesia.

Major Abdominoplasty

A major abdominoplasty involves removing most or all of the skin and fat pad between the belly button and the pubis. The belly button stays in place and the skin of the upper abdomen is pulled down to resurface the whole tummy. Frequently, the rectus muscles are stretched out with pregnancy, and they are sutured together to restore their normal position as part of the abdominoplasty. The abdominoplasty incision is low across the bikini line, and there is a fine scar around the belly button. This requires a general anesthetic. It is generally done as an outpatient at T.A.S.I. Surgery Center. The patient wears an abdominal binder for up to two weeks after surgery. The patient should be off work for two weeks following the surgery. It takes four months for the swelling from surgery to go down completely. After an extensive abdominoplasty the patient may benefit from a touch up procedure in four to six months to have a smooth contour at the ends of the incision.

Mini Abdominoplasty

A mini abdominoplasty involves removing skin and fat from the lower abdomen just above the pubis. The incision runs across the bikini line. This can sometimes be done under local anesthesia. There are no drains with this procedure. The patient wears an abdominal binder for several days and can return to work within a few days.

If liposuction is to be done with the mini abdominoplasty, it is preferable to have a general anesthetic. There are no drains, and the patient can go home after surgery. The patient will wear an abdominal binder for up to two weeks. The patient can usually return to work after several days.

Considerations

With all of these procedures, the patient needs to avoid heavy lifting and straining for two weeks. If the rectus muscles are repaired, the patient needs to avoid heavy lifting and straining for eight weeks after surgery.

There will be some degree of permanent numbness of the lower abdomen following the procedures, just as with a cesarean section scar.

Infection, skin necrosis and long-term painful areas after surgery are uncommon.

Precautions

There are several precautions associated with a major abdominoplasty. There is a risk of thrombophlebitis in the legs with this surgery, especially if the patient has a history of thrombophlebitis in the past. There is an increased risk of skin of the lower abdomen dying if the patient has a long scar such as a gallbladder incision across the upper abdomen. Smoking greatly increases the risk of skin necrosis with a major abdominoplasty surgery. It is important to stop smoking for two weeks before this surgery and not resume smoking until two weeks after surgery.