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

A Tummy Tuck CAN be done under local anesthesia. But it’s probably not in your best interests.

I have personally done tummy tuck surgery under all possible anesthetic techniques, and would have you understand the following: Doing a tummy tuck under local, it is almost impossible to achieve as good an outcome as you can reliably achieve with the patient under general anesthesia.

Without muscle relaxation (medication given when under general anesthesia that paralyzes the muscles, making their tightening much more effective), effective muscle tightening is simply not possible as your muscles fight the sutures with every breath, especially if you feel a twinge of pain from time to time (this is inevitable).

Tummy tuck with local anesthesia photo

If that’s not enough to deter you, realize that THERe IS A LIMIT TO HOW MUCH NUMBING MEDICINE YOU CAN HAVE safely, and that if you have too much (because you are in pain and your surgeon is now under pressure to finish the operation he/she started), you could die.

In fact, many of the cases of patient deaths during liposuction have resulted from overdoses of numbing medicine. Tummy tucks can be done with deep sedation and numbing medicine, but again, the outcome is simply never as good. Take a step back from this discussion for a minute and think about why you are even asking these questions.

I think it’s probably safe to assume that you are asking about this because you want your abdomen to look as good as it can, and you would like to be as safe as possible throughout the process, right?

Tummy tuck with local anesthesia image

As long as that is the case, your chances of ending up happy are the highest if you find a surgeon certified by The American Board of Plastic Surgery and discuss your goals with them.  (Armando Soto, MD, FACS, Orlando Plastic Surgeon)

Tummy Tuck and local anesthesia

Technically, you could have this done under local anesthesia, but it would be hard to adequately and safely numb the entire abdomen for the whole procedure. In addition, if your abdominal muscles are not relaxed, as they would be under general anesthesia, it would be difficult to tighten them. I always prefer to have both mini and full tummy tucks under general anesthesia, as it provides the safest and most comfortable experience for the patient, which really is the bottom line. (Nina S. Naidu, MD, FACS, New York Plastic Surgeon)

Mini abdominoplasty can be done while awake

The tummy tuck with local anesthesia

A mini-abdominoplasty can be easily done under local. Doing a full abdominoplasty is a bit more work and would likely be uncomfortable under straight local. Doing it with some sedation or perhaps under spinal would be another alternative. (Robert Frank, MD, Munster Plastic Surgeon)

No reason to have Tummy Tuck with local anesthesia

Why would you want to? Do you like pain? There is no reason to do a tummy tuck with local anesthesia, it can be done, but why do something that will be painfull and annoyig to both you and the surgeon. In the 1800’s anesthesia was invented. It has gotten progressively better and safe. Just because it is possible to do an operation under local only why worry about pain and comfort. Talk to your surgeon and have him explain why he uses some form of sedation or general anesthesia. (William B. Rosenblatt, MD, New York Plastic Surgeon)

Abdominoplasty with local anesthesia

Full tummy tuck not generally done under local

Any procedure can be under local anesthesia but the more involved the procedure the more you will feel it. A full tummy tuck is very comprehensive that corrects many layers of tissue. Lesser forms of a tummy tuck would be more reasonable to do under local anesthesia, such as a mini tuck. There are too many times where the procedure under local anesthesia has to be curtailed due to patent’s comfort or safety. If you are healthy and capable of doing the tummy tuck procedure you should be able to tolerate the general anesthetic. (Marcus L. Peterson, MD, Saint George Plastic Surgeon)

Local anesthesia for tummy tuck

Some surgeons, and I was trained this way, perform the tummy tucks under local. For a variety of reasons, I prefer to perform them under general anesthesia. Some surgeons use “regional” (spinal or epidural) anesthesia but this is frequently associated with bladder problems. (Otto Joseph Placik, MD, Chicago Plastic Surgeon)

Tummy tuck under epidural anesthesia

I personally don’t do this but have a close friend who does all of his tummy tucks under epidural anesthesia. This is the very least you need, most would recommend a general anesthetic. (Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS, Seattle Plastic Surgeon)