What You Should Know About a Tummy Tuck
A tummy tuck is a procedure that tightens the body's midsection.
It often provides benefits to people who are too full in the middle or have an "apple" shape -- from past pregnancy, weight loss leaving excess skin, their natural anatomy, or stubborn fat that will not go away with diet and exercise.
The procedure involves removing extra fat and skin from the abdomen and usually tightening the weakened muscles under the skin.
The result is a sculpting of the torso into a smooth profile.
The medical term for this procedure is abdominoplasty.
Choosing a Surgeon You need to choose a plastic surgeon you can trust.
This means choosing a surgeon who is properly trained, with at least five years of residency including at least two years of plastic surgery.
Check to make sure that the surgeon does procedures exclusively at accredited facilities.
Get recommendations from friends, and do your research.
The Role of the Tummy Tuck Most people want to achieve the look of a flat and well-toned abdomen.
Some use exercise and weight control to achieve that appearance.
Others, because of their anatomy, history of weight loss or gain, aging, previous surgery, or pregnancy, simply do not improve with exercise.
This is where the tummy tuck comes in.
It can create the thin and toned look through surgery.
This procedure is not a weight loss surgery.
It does not take the place of exercise.
While the results are considered to be permanent, it can fail if people go on to gain a great deal more weight.
Most often, this surgery will not remove all of your stretch marks, which are considered to be permanent, although the procedure often removes most of them from the tummy area.
This is especially true for stretch marks below the belly button.
This is a surgery that is best preformed if your weight is stable and you are healthy overall.
You should have a good understanding of the expected outcome.
The procedure is best not performed on people who currently smoke as this complicates wound healing and places the survival of skin at risk.
If you are planning on having this surgery, you should stop smoking well before going "under the knife.
" Your Initial Consultation In your first consultation, you will be asked key questions to determine if you are a good candidate for the procedure.
You should plan to describe why you want the surgery and what your desired outcome would be.
You will present your medical conditions, previous medical treatments and your allergies.
The doctor will want to know your current medications, including vitamins, herbal supplement use, alcohol and smoking, and any surgery you have had in the past.
You will discuss your current health status and any risk factors or preexisting conditions that could affect the surgery.
Your doctor will probably take photographs of your current situation.
He or she will discuss the likely outcomes of the tummy tuck procedure and go over the possible risk factors or complications.
Getting Ready for Surgery Before surgery, you likely will have lab tests to check your blood counts.
You will avoid taking aspirin or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications.
Your doctor will discuss anesthesia with you, which usually will be in the form of general anesthesia.
You will make plans for your recovery, including time off from work and having someone to help you at home for the first few days.
Risks of Abdominoplasty A tummy tuck does have risks.
These include infection, fluid accumulation under the skin, poor wound healing, loss of skin, anesthesia risks, blood clots, wound separation, fat necrosis, poor symmetry, loose skin, recurrent pain, deep vein thrombosis, numbness or nerve damage, need to have a revision, poor appearance of the results and leg swelling.
While these risks are real, they come up infrequently.
This is true for everything except the scar.
There will be a scar, every time.
If you want to have the procedure you must understand this prior to going forward.
The Procedure Itself During the abdominoplasty procedure, you will be put to sleep with general anesthesia.
A complete tummy tuck involves making a horizontal incision in the area low in the pubic area - it is like a c-section scar but is usually longer.
The shape and length of the incision is determined by the amount of skin that needs to be removed.
It is through this incision that your surgeon will repair weakened abdominal muscles and remove your excess fat and skin.
Another incision around the belly button allows the entirety of the abdomen to be re-shaped.
This belly button incision is not made during a "mini abdominoplasty" which only removes skin below the belly button and does less to address someone's entire midsection and sides.
The tummy tuck is not a small undertaking.
It takes several hours to perform, and requires planning before and recovery after the procedure.
But for the right candidate, the results are often dramatic.
In some cases they are life-changing.
It often provides benefits to people who are too full in the middle or have an "apple" shape -- from past pregnancy, weight loss leaving excess skin, their natural anatomy, or stubborn fat that will not go away with diet and exercise.
The procedure involves removing extra fat and skin from the abdomen and usually tightening the weakened muscles under the skin.
The result is a sculpting of the torso into a smooth profile.
The medical term for this procedure is abdominoplasty.
Choosing a Surgeon You need to choose a plastic surgeon you can trust.
This means choosing a surgeon who is properly trained, with at least five years of residency including at least two years of plastic surgery.
Check to make sure that the surgeon does procedures exclusively at accredited facilities.
Get recommendations from friends, and do your research.
The Role of the Tummy Tuck Most people want to achieve the look of a flat and well-toned abdomen.
Some use exercise and weight control to achieve that appearance.
Others, because of their anatomy, history of weight loss or gain, aging, previous surgery, or pregnancy, simply do not improve with exercise.
This is where the tummy tuck comes in.
It can create the thin and toned look through surgery.
This procedure is not a weight loss surgery.
It does not take the place of exercise.
While the results are considered to be permanent, it can fail if people go on to gain a great deal more weight.
Most often, this surgery will not remove all of your stretch marks, which are considered to be permanent, although the procedure often removes most of them from the tummy area.
This is especially true for stretch marks below the belly button.
This is a surgery that is best preformed if your weight is stable and you are healthy overall.
You should have a good understanding of the expected outcome.
The procedure is best not performed on people who currently smoke as this complicates wound healing and places the survival of skin at risk.
If you are planning on having this surgery, you should stop smoking well before going "under the knife.
" Your Initial Consultation In your first consultation, you will be asked key questions to determine if you are a good candidate for the procedure.
You should plan to describe why you want the surgery and what your desired outcome would be.
You will present your medical conditions, previous medical treatments and your allergies.
The doctor will want to know your current medications, including vitamins, herbal supplement use, alcohol and smoking, and any surgery you have had in the past.
You will discuss your current health status and any risk factors or preexisting conditions that could affect the surgery.
Your doctor will probably take photographs of your current situation.
He or she will discuss the likely outcomes of the tummy tuck procedure and go over the possible risk factors or complications.
Getting Ready for Surgery Before surgery, you likely will have lab tests to check your blood counts.
You will avoid taking aspirin or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications.
Your doctor will discuss anesthesia with you, which usually will be in the form of general anesthesia.
You will make plans for your recovery, including time off from work and having someone to help you at home for the first few days.
Risks of Abdominoplasty A tummy tuck does have risks.
These include infection, fluid accumulation under the skin, poor wound healing, loss of skin, anesthesia risks, blood clots, wound separation, fat necrosis, poor symmetry, loose skin, recurrent pain, deep vein thrombosis, numbness or nerve damage, need to have a revision, poor appearance of the results and leg swelling.
While these risks are real, they come up infrequently.
This is true for everything except the scar.
There will be a scar, every time.
If you want to have the procedure you must understand this prior to going forward.
The Procedure Itself During the abdominoplasty procedure, you will be put to sleep with general anesthesia.
A complete tummy tuck involves making a horizontal incision in the area low in the pubic area - it is like a c-section scar but is usually longer.
The shape and length of the incision is determined by the amount of skin that needs to be removed.
It is through this incision that your surgeon will repair weakened abdominal muscles and remove your excess fat and skin.
Another incision around the belly button allows the entirety of the abdomen to be re-shaped.
This belly button incision is not made during a "mini abdominoplasty" which only removes skin below the belly button and does less to address someone's entire midsection and sides.
The tummy tuck is not a small undertaking.
It takes several hours to perform, and requires planning before and recovery after the procedure.
But for the right candidate, the results are often dramatic.
In some cases they are life-changing.
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