After repeated pregnancies or rapid weight loss after bariatric surgery, many people have a sagging layer of loose skin and fat over their abdomen that persists no matter how much they exercise or how strict their diet. These are the people who might benefit from a cosmetic surgery called a tummy tuck, or abdominoplasty.
What is a Tummy Tuck?
During a tummy tuck, the plastic surgeon removes excess, loose skin and fat from the abdomen and tightens the abdominal muscles. There are different types and techniques, but the result of these surgeries is always a trimmer and more youthful silhouette and a halting of the slackening of the abdominal wall.
The Surgery
Most people who have a tummy tuck have general anesthesia during their surgery. How long it takes to recover depends on the type of tummy tuck that was performed and other factors, but most patients recover from the surgery after weeks to months.
Before the surgery, the patient should prepare their home for their recuperation, which may mean TV dinners or meals that are cooked ahead of time and placed in the freezer. They should have someone drive them back and forth to the medical facility and stay with them for a few days to make sure all is well and to help them with daily tasks.
Who is a Candidate?
As with most cosmetic surgeries, a person who is a good candidate for a tummy tuck is in overall good mental and physical health and has realistic expectations. They should not smoke, and if the patient is a woman of childbearing age, she should have completed her family, for pregnancy can stretch the muscles that were repaired during the procedure. The patient also should not have problems with their circulation, be extremely overweight or have uncontrolled diabetes.
Every interested patient will have a consultation with the plastic surgeon to make sure they’re a good candidate. Since a tummy tuck is an elective surgery, they will have time to prepare for it to get the best outcome. This may mean temporarily giving up alcohol and stopping medications that can interfere with the surgery or the patient’s recovery. The doctor will also tell an overweight patient to lose weight, for the best results from the surgery come when the patient is close to their ideal weight.
Learn More
If you can’t seem to be rid of that area of unwanted fat and skin on your abdomen and think that a tummy tuck is a solution, schedule an appointment at Mountain State Cosmetic Surgery to find out for sure. Contact us today to book your consultation at our office in Beckley!
