Tummy Tuck | Abdominoplasty

TUMMY TUCK- ABDOMINOPLASTY

Are sit-ups just not giving you the taut tummy you desire? If you’ve got a little too much flab or excess skin, especially from a weight loss in your abdomen that won’t diminish with diet or exercise, you may want to consider an abdominoplasty, popularly referred to as a “tummy tuck.”

This procedure flattens your abdomen by removing extra fat and skin, and tightening muscles in your abdominal wall.

A tummy tuck should be the last resort for people who have exhausted all other measures, and the procedure should not be used as an alternative to weight loss.

Who Are the Best Candidates For a Tummy Tuck?

A tummy tuck is suitable for both men and women who are in good general health overall.

It should not be confused with a liposuction (the cosmetic surgery used to remove fat deposits), although your Dr. Tiller may elect to perform liposuction as part of a tummy tuck.

Women who have muscles and skin stretched by multiple pregnancies may find the procedure useful to tighten those muscles and reduce that skin. A tummy tuck is also an alternative for men or women who were obese at one point in their lives and still have excessive fat deposits or loose skin in the abdominal area.

Who Should Not Consider a Tummy Tuck?

If you’re a woman who is still planning to have children, then you may want to postpone a tummy tuck until you’re through bearing children. Here’s why: During surgery, your vertical muscles are tightened. Future pregnancies can separate these muscles.

Are you still planning to lose a lot of weight? Then you may want to consider waiting for your goal weight loss and then consider a tummy tuck.

How a Tummy Tuck is Done

Depending on your desired results, this surgery can take anywhere from one to five hours. The complexity of your particular situation also will determine whether you have it completed as an in-patient or outpatient procedure.

You will receive general anesthesia, which will put you to sleep during the operation. It’s important to have someone with you who can drive you home. If you live alone, you also will need someone to stay with you at least the first night after the surgery.

There are two options for a tummy tuck. You and your Dr. Tiller will discuss your desired results, and he  will determine the appropriate procedure during your consultation.

• Complete abdominoplasty. Your abdomen will be cut from hipbone to hipbone in this procedure, the option for those patients who require the most correction. The incision will be made as low as possible, at about the same level as your pubic hair to conceal the scar as much as possible.

Dr. Tiller will then manipulate and contour the skin, tissue and muscle as needed. Your belly button will have a new opening if you undergo this procedure, because it’s necessary to free your navel from surrounding tissue. Drainage tubes may be placed under your skin and these will be removed in a few days as Dr. Tiller sees fit.

• Partial or mini abdominoplasty. Mini-abdominoplasties are often performed on patients whose fat deposits are located below the navel and require shorter incisions.During this procedure, your belly button most likely will not be moved. Your skin will be separated between the line of incision and your belly button.  The procedure may only take up to two hours, again, depending on your own personal situation and the complexity of your needs.
•  For mor information regarding this procedure and to find out if you may be a good candidate, contact