Abdominoplasty or ‘Tummy Tuck’

Due to a large amount of weight loss, or following pregnancies, the fat and skin around the lower abdomen can become loose. Abdominoplasty or ‘Tummy Tuck’ is a cosmetic surgery procedure to remove extra fat and loose skin from the abdomen. This procedure or treatment can be appropriate for patients who face challenge in reducing despite the exercising. Abdominoplasty treatment will restore undermined or weakened muscles, and change the shape and tone of the abdomen to create a firmer and smoother stomach.

Note

You should not consider ‘tummy tuck’ surgery as a substitute for weight loss or an exercise program. It is possible to achieve a slimmer tummy without surgery, through healthy dieting and exercising. It is always recommended to consider abdominoplasty only after dieting and exercise.

Depending on the results you want, this surgery can take anywhere from one to five hours.

• Complete abdominoplasty: This option is for patients who need the most correction. The incision (cut) is made at the bikini line, at about the same level as your pubic hair. The length of the scar depends on the amount of extra skin. Your surgeon will then manipulate and shape the skin and muscle as needed. You will also have an incision around your navel (belly button) with this procedure because it's necessary to free your navel from surrounding tissue. Drainage tubes may or may not be placed under your skin. These will be removed in a few days as your surgeon sees fit.
• Partial or mini-abdominoplasty: Mini-abdominoplasties are done with shorter incisions and are often performed on people who have less excess skin. Your belly button most likely won't be moved during this type of procedure. Your skin will be separated between the line of the incision and your belly button. This procedure generally takes one to two hours. As with the complete abdominoplasty, you may or may not have drainage tubes after surgery.
• Circumferential abdominoplasty: This surgery includes the back area. When there is a lot of excess fat in the back as well as the abdomen, you may have either liposuction of the back or circumferential abdominoplasty. The latter procedure allows for the removal of both skin and fat from the hip and back areas, which improves the shape of your body from all sides.

Precautions After Partial or Complete Tummy Tuck

• Incision site will be stitched and bandaged.
• Surgeon may advise you to wear a compression garment after surgery.
• Follow all of your surgeon's instructions on wearing this garment and caring for the bandage. Your surgeon will also tell you about the best way to sit or lie down so you'll be in the least amount of pain.

Complications and Side effects of Abdominoplasty (Tummy Tuck)

As expected, you will have pain and swelling after surgery. Your doctor will prescribe pain medications as needed. Soreness may last for several weeks. You may also have numbness, bruising and overall tiredness for that period. As with any surgery, there are risks. You may have an increased risk of complications if you have poor circulation, diabetes, heart, lung, or liver disease, or if you smoke. Complications can include:

• Scarring.
• Hematoma (bleeding).
• Infection.
• Seroma (accumulation of fluid).
• Poor wound healing.
• Blood clots.
• Numbness or other changes in sensation.

Other complications include:

• Fat necrosis (death of fatty tissue located deep in the skin).
• Wound separation.
• Asymmetry (unevenness or lopsidedness).

This surgery usually takes up to 4-5 hours and a patient can get to daily routine work and look within a week.

To know and understand all the pros and cons of abdominoplasty surgery, you can get a consultation with our surgeon at Dr. Shishir Agrawal’s clinic. Our surgeon will guide you through the entire procedure of this surgery and how to take care after getting it. In Delhi/NCR, we have successfully served with treatments to many patients and gained much recognition for the quality of services we delivered to them. Dr Agrawal is an experienced surgeon to provide the required advice and consultation for abdominoplasty in Delhi.