Tummy Tuck: Prices, Photos, Reviews, Info, Q&A

Tummy tuck is usually indicated for patients after childbirth or major weight loss. If you have loose skin with or without stretch marks either below or up to and above the belly button, then you are a good candidate for a tummy tuck.

Some patients may not have any loose skin but the abdominal muscles have become weak (usually due to pregnancy). In this case, the patient may not have any fat under the abdominal skin, yet the abdomen will stick out like a “beer belly”.

The only way to correct the weakness and flatten the abdomen is with an abdominoplasty.(Michael A. Jazayeri, MD, Santa Ana Plastic Surgeon)

We evalulate 3 things: excess skin, excessive fat and losse muscle layers. If you have just fat, it is liposuction. If you have a mild skin and fat problem, it could be Smart lipo. And if you have all 3, you need a tummy tuck. (Barry E. DiBernardo, MD, Montclair Plastic Surgeon)

Should you get a tummy tuck? Answer these questions:

1. Do you have excess or stretch marked skin, excess abdominal fat and laxity of the abdominal wall?
2. Do you have good health, which facilitate your recovery?
3. Do you plan any more pregnancies?
4. Have you attained your “ideal” body weight?
5. Do you have sufficient time to recover and/or help to cover your usual home duties?

If your answers are “yes”, explore your options with a Board Certified PS, who can counsel you further. (Lavinia Chong, MD, Orange County Plastic Surgeon)

A Tummy tuck will flatten your tummy by tightening separated and expanded muscles (such as after pregnancy or weight loss), narrow your waist, remove most of the skin and subcutaneous fat between the belly button and the pubic mound, lift a sagging pubic mound and, if a Lockwood (High Lateral Tension) Abdominoplasty is done, lift sagging thighs and smooth cellulite dimpling.

If you your weight has been stable for 6 months and is preferably around a BMI of 23 to 27, if you are done having children and want to reclaim your pre-pregnancy figure, if you are bothered by a tummy pooch which has been resistant to exercise – a Tummy Tuck will greatly enhance your appearance. (Peter A. Aldea, MD, Memphis Plastic Surgeon)

Most patients who come in for a tummy tuck have had children before, but not all. They may have excess fatty tissue, excess or loose skin, and possibly loose abdominal muscles or separation with or without stretch marks. This operation will address all of these issues.

Some women are fortunate enough to retain a tight abominal core following childbirth and may retain good elasticity and thus only require liposuction, this is often good metabolism and genetics. It’s not necessarily related to how much you worked out, so don’t feel bad for the way your abdomen has loosened. It happens to many, many patients.

Have your board-certified plastic surgeon evaluate your abdomen to see if liposuction may also be an option for you. (Ricardo A. Meade, MD, Dallas Plastic Surgeon)

Should I get tummy tuck?

Patients who are good candidates for tummy tuck surgery are those who have loose, damaged abdominal skin as well as abdominal muscles that have been separated due to weight loss and/or pregnancy. The tummy tuck surgery will remove the damaged skin from below the belly button and the surgeon will tighten the abdominal muscles as well. Some patients who may want liposuction instead of tummy tuck should be examined to make sure that liposuction will achieve the results they want. (Tom J. Pousti, MD, FACS, San Diego Plastic Surgeon)

Tummy tuck versus liposuction

Frequently, patients are trying to discern whether liposuction alone will meet their goals or do they need some variation of a tummy tuck (or mini tummy tuck).

A tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) accomplishes three things:

1. It removes extra loose skin
2. It tightens the stomach muscles (that nasty bulge below the belly button that won’t go away with sit-ups) that have permanently spread apart after child bearing.
3. It creates a new attractive belly button

Liposuction alone will mainly remove some of the bulk or the thickness of the fatty layer of tissue.

I actually combine liposuction with every tummy tuck to enhance the tummy tuck results on the sides/love handles to avoid the bulge on the sides when your central abdominal skin is tightened by a tummy tuck alone.

Some patients confuse the benefits of lipo and tummy tuck.

Many patients tend to benefit first from the liposuction procedure to shape the body, and then have a tummy tuck to remove excess skin and improve muscle laxity. With either procedure, the patient should be near their target weight and in good general health.

In general men and women who have excess skin and fat of the abdominal wall are good candidates for a tummy tuck. I prefer that my patients get to a stable body weight prior to any surgery. This allows for a stable long-term result.

For women in particular it is a good idea to be done having children. If a women has had children she often will also have splaying of her rectus (“6-pack”) muscles, which will need repair during the tummy tuck.

As far as incision length is concerned, someone can have a mini-tummy tuck if they have a little extra skin and fat centrally below the belly button. If there is excess skin and fat above and below the belly button, the incision usually goes hip bone to hip bone.

In some cases, the incision goes from front to back if there is a large excess of flank skin and fat. This allows for tapering of the silhouette.

Occasionally, tummy tuck surgery is combined with liposuction to further enhance the final shape. (Manish H. Shah, MD, FACS, Denver Plastic Surgeon)