Tummy tuck for removal of stretch marks
It is possible to remove skin above the belly button even more than an inch but that depends on how much excess skin you have. The goal is to close the abdomen with minimal tension after removal of the excess skin. (Dana Khuthaila, MD, FACS, New York Plastic Surgeon)
Removing stretch marks above the umbilicus in an abdominoplasty
A standard abdominoplasty removes an ellipse of skin between the lower transverse incision and the umbilicus. If there are stretch marks above the umbilicus these will be moved inferiorly.
It is impossible to remove all of the stretch marks above the umbilicus because the skin is used to resurface the entire abdomen. (Jeffrey Zwiren, MD, Atlanta Plastic Surgeon)
Stretch Marks and Tummy Tuck
Stretch marks above the belly button typically do not get thrown away with a tummy tuck, because the skin in that area is needed to create the new tummy surface.
They often do look quite a lot better with the skin pulled tight than they did before, though. Unfortunately a cure for stretch marks has not yet been found. (They are actually scars from the skin tearing from the underneath side). (Deborah Ekstrom, MD, Worcester Plastic Surgeon)
Abdominoplasty striae
It depends on the extent of the excess skin. Sometimes these upper abdominal striae are able to be removed in patients that have excessive amounts of skin for example after massive weight loss (>100lbs).
In standard patients, most upper abdominal stria are not able to be excised but often are translocated into a more favorable location on the abdomen sometimes resulting in a more satisfactory aesthetic appearance. (Chad Douglas Tattini, MD, Bloomington Plastic Surgeon)
Questions About a Traditional Full Tummy Tuck Removing Stretch Marks That Are Above My Belly Button?
All the tissue between the upper and lower incision will be removed. But there has to be enough tissue to close the abdomen back together, For most patients, there would not be enough excess tissue from the breastbone to an inch above the navel to close.
For example, a patient who has lost 150 pounds will likely have enough to close using tissue from the bottom of the breast bone to an inch above the navel. Someone with mild laxity after pregnancies will not. Without photos, I wouldn’t hazard a guess. (Jourdan Gottlieb, MD, Seattle Plastic Surgeon)