An abdominoplasty, commonly known as a Tummy Tuck, is a surgical procedure that does two things. It removes loose skin and fat from the abdomen in the area between the middle and lower stomach, and it tightens up the underlying stretched-out muscles. This significantly flattens the tummy, and reduces unsightly rolls. The Tummy Tuck is a common procedure for women wanting to improve their body’s contours after pregnancy or major weight loss.
Surgical Steps
For a full abdominoplasty an incision is made from hip to hip just above the pubic area, and another incision made to free the navel from the surrounding skin. The skin is then detached from the abdominal wall, revealing the muscles and fascia. Sutures are used to tighten the muscle fascia wall, and if neeeded liposuction is used to refine the abdominal contours. A mini-abdominoplasty is done with a smaller incision similar to that of a C-section.
The mini-bdominoplasty is a day procedure, but a full one requires an overnight stay in our recovery ward. Both are performed under general anaesthesia.
Recovery
A compression garment must be worn for a few weeks after surgery to ensure that the skin heals and readheres smoothly against the abdominal wall. This prevents the effects of gravity or clothing from adversely affecting the positioning of the skin, and helps deliver a smoother final result. Pain killers are provided to help manage any discomfort over the first few days after the operation.
Several post-operative care visits are required after surgery. These are to ensure that wound healing is progressing without infection and to monitor for inflammation. Also, various treatments are provided to accelerate the reduction of swelling and bruising. Full recovery from all effects of swelling and bruising can take several months, but one can typically return to work after a week, and most effects will have subsided after two to three weeks.
As all nicotine products reduce oxygen in the blood, these must be completely avoided, as they will adversely affect healing.
Scarring
An abdominoplasty does leave a significant scar, however, the incision is made below the bikini line. In most cases, this positioning of the scar prevents it from being seen at the gym or on the beach. The scar will seem prominent at first, but with proper care, it’s appearance will diminish over time. In some cases, additional treatments such as J-Plasma may be able to provide additional scar reduction.
