Body Surgery
Abdominoplasty
The appearance of the abdomen changes over time. Weight gain and pregnancy may stretch the abdominal skin and cause a loss of skin elasticity. This skin stretching can tear the tissues and create stretch marks. The skin changes are often permanent despite following an appropriate diet, exercising well and losing weight . Surgical scars of the abdomen can also alter the tummy appearance.
During your consultation, we will carefully examine your abdomen noting any scars, the abdominal skin quality and quantity, the abdominal muscle tone and position, the presence or absence of hernias and any fat deposits along with the fat location. Abdominal fat is either located below the skin or within the abdominal cavity. Only fat below the skin may be safely removed with cosmetic surgery. The ideal candidate for an abdominoplasty is a healthy, non-smoker, who has no upper abdominal scars and who has maintained their current weight for at least 6 months.
We tailor the type of surgery to your physique. In general, the operation requires a lower abdominal scar extending from one hip to the other, as well as a scar around the navel. The underlying muscles may be tightened to redefine the abdominal outline. The skin and soft tissues are stretched, pulled down, and the surplus removed. Liposuction is often used in combination with an abdominoplasty to eliminate specific fat deposit such as love handles. A mini-abdominoplasty is a smaller variation of the procedure and can be performed when there is less abdominal skin to be removed. We will show you before and after photographs of the procedure during your consultation.
After the operation, we recommend that you wear a supportive abdominal binder for the recovery period of 4 to 6 weeks. The risks of the procedure include scars, infection, hematoma (bleeding with the abdomen), seroma (a collection of clear fluid below the abdomen skin), deep vein thrombosis (blood clots in the legs), and pulmonary embolism. These will be discussed with you during your consultation. Rest assured, we take all necessary precautions to avoid any serious complications that can arise following this procedure.
For reasons of confidentiality, we chose not to publish photos of our patients. We invite you to consult this Americain website to see photos before and after surgery.