Tummy Tuck and Body Contouring

If you have excess skin and fat, loose or sagging skin, stretch marks, or you want to contour your upper body, lower body, or midsection, you may be the perfect candidate for a body contouring procedure. Body sculpting is an umbrella term for cosmetic surgery procedures that do what diet and exercise cannot. They surgically remove excess skin and fat to help patients achieve their ideal appearance.

What Is the Tummy Tuck?

The tummy tuck, also known as abdominoplasty, surgically redefines the midsection to improve abdominal contours, abdominal strength, and overall appearance.

If you’re unhappy with the appearance of your midsection because of hanging skin, stubborn fat, or poor skin elasticity, the tummy tuck may be right for you. It does what diet and exercise can’t and will transform your entire midsection.

What Does It Treat?

Tummy tuck surgery can treat the most common issues that affect the midsection’s appearance. It’s ideal for those who have exercised and dieted but still haven’t seen improvements in the appearance of their midsection.

Tummy tuck surgery is also ideal for those who have experienced significant weight loss and have sagging skin as a result. It’s popular among women who want to reclaim their pre-baby bodies after pregnancy by removing excess skin and fat.

Excess Fat

The abdominal area tends to hold stubborn fat cells, and no matter how clean you eat and how hard you exercise, that stubborn fat still doesn’t budge. This body contouring surgery can do what a healthy lifestyle can’t; it targets the abdominal fat cells that prevent you from achieving your ideal appearance or hiding your hard-earned muscle.

During a traditional tummy tuck, the plastic surgeon will use liposuction to remove fat cells directly from the body. He will then tighten the remaining skin, and you’ll enjoy permanently reduced fat volume in your abdomen after surgery.

Loose Abdominal Skin

Stretch marks and loose skin on the abdomen can result from significant weight loss. Women also notice more loose skin after each additional pregnancy, and it’s often very difficult to treat with non-surgical body contouring treatments alone. During this surgical procedure, the surgeon will use skin excision techniques and then pull the skin taut to improve the appearance of the patient’s abdomen and ensure the most natural appearance after surgery.

Loose skin can be removed from the lower abdomen or the upper abdomen based on the patient’s unique needs and treatment goals.

Abdominal Wall Weaknesses

The tummy tuck treats weakened abdominal muscles to improve muscle tone and strength. The surgeon uses advanced techniques to tighten muscles or repair muscles in the abdominal area.

Patients who want stronger abdominal muscles or have issues that need to be repaired, like diastasis recti, and also want to immediately and permanently lose fat and get rid of excess skin make ideal candidates for the tummy tuck.

Customizing Your Cosmetic Surgery

Most patients who want to undergo a tummy tuck schedule the traditional version of this plastic surgery to improve the appearance of their entire abdomen. This procedure targets the area above and below the belly button and will be customized to meet each patient’s needs. Your board-certified plastic surgeon may also create a new belly button during surgery to ensure the most natural appearance after removing the patient’s own skin to tighten the entire area.

However, there are different versions of the tummy tuck, and your board-certified plastic surgeon can custom-tailor a procedure that meets your needs and focuses on your primary area of concern, whether that’s loose skin, weak abdominal muscles, excess skin, visible stretch marks, or excess fat.

The Extended Tummy Tuck

The extended tummy tuck is a plastic surgery procedure that includes all the typical surgical treatments of a traditional tummy tuck, as well as surgical fat removal and skin-tightening techniques to target the flanks and lower back.

This version of the tummy tuck targets multiple areas to help patients achieve their ideal appearance and body contours.

The Mini Tummy Tuck

The mini tummy tuck is a version of abdominoplasty that targets fat cells and loose skin below the belly button on the lower abdomen.

The mini tummy tuck is ideal for patients who have reached a stable weight and want to address cosmetic imperfections, like extra skin and fat affecting the appearance of their lower abdomen and their confidence.

What Is Surgical Body Sculpting?

Surgical body sculpting refers to plastic surgery procedures that can tighten and contour various areas of the body for long-lasting results.

These procedures are not weight loss surgeries; instead, they are intended to help patients who have reached a stable weight contour their bodies in a way that exercise and diet cannot.

Liposuction

Liposuction is one of the most popular body contouring procedures. While it is minimally invasive, it’s considered major surgery and is usually performed at a surgical center. Patients must be in good health and have reached an ideal weight before undergoing liposuction.

While this plastic surgery will reduce fat volume in one of multiple areas, it’s not a weight loss procedure. Patients must maintain a healthy weight after the procedure to maintain lasting results. During a liposuction procedure, the surgeon uses a thin tube called a cannula to gently suction fat cells out of the body. Surgeons will utilize tumescent fluid during liposuction to constrict blood vessels; a process that accelerates recovery time and reduces discomfort during the healing process.

The Breast Lift

The breast lift is a breast surgery that promotes the most youthful-looking breasts. During this procedure, the surgeon removes excess skin that’s causing the breasts to sag or droop and then reshapes the breast tissue, lifting the breasts higher on the chest wall in the process.

This breast contouring procedure can reverse the effects that weight loss, pregnancy, nursing, and aging have on the breasts. It can be performed on its own or in combination with a breast augmentation or other body contouring surgeries.

The Body Lift Procedure

The body lift is a body contouring surgery that targets multiple body areas, including the abdomen, the thighs, and the buttocks.

The body lift procedure is ideal for patients who live a healthy lifestyle and don’t necessarily want to lose weight but have noticeable loose skin and extra fat in multiple areas and want to improve their body contours through surgical skin tightening and fat removal.

The Full Body Lift vs. the Lower Body Lift

The full body lift targets skin laxity and excess fat on the lower and upper body to help patients achieve their ideal body proportions and contours. The lower body lift focuses on tightening the skin and reducing fat volume in the lower body only. It will target fat cells in multiple areas and reverse the effects of sagging skin on your appearance and confidence.

If you have reached an ideal weight but still aren’t happy with your appearance and want to tighten and tone your body, eliminate stretch marks, and say goodbye to that excess skin and fat for good, this surgical procedure may be the perfect option for you.

Who Is a Good Candidate for a Body Contouring Procedure?

Patients should be in good health, have reached their ideal weight, and not be prone to blood clots or have other medical conditions that could cause complications during plastic surgery. Patients should also have realistic expectations about the surgery, the recovery, and the results.

They must be committed to living a healthy lifestyle after surgery to avoid weight gain, as gaining weight after liposuction, a body lift, a mini tummy tuck, a traditional tummy tuck, an extended tummy tuck, or another body contouring surgical procedure will negatively affect the results. At your consultation, the surgeon will complete a physical exam, ask questions about your medical history and whether you take any herbal supplements or medications to determine your surgical eligibility.

Are There Non-Surgical Procedures That Treat Loose Skin?

Some patients may not qualify for a tummy tuck or another type of body contouring surgery due to health issues or safety concerns. Those patients have other options, including non-surgical body sculpting treatments.

These treatments use energy-based devices to target stubborn fat and reverse skin laxity without any recovery time. If you don’t qualify for plastic surgery, your surgeon can give you more information about non-surgical treatments that can help you look and feel like the best version of yourself.

What Is the Recovery Like?

After a tummy tuck, liposuction, a body lift, a breast lift, or any other type of body contouring surgery, you’ll need to spend time resting and recovering. Your surgeon will give you more information about how to care for the incision site.

Regardless of whether you have a horizontal incision or a vertical one, you’ll need to follow some specific aftercare instructions to ensure proper healing. You can resume your normal activities a few weeks after your body contouring surgery.

If you want to contour your body via a mini tummy tuck, a body lift, or a traditional tummy tuck and finally target stretch marks, excess skin and fat, and weakened abdominal muscles, we can help. Contact Palms Wellington Plastic Surgery in Wellington, FL, to schedule your consultation.