Tummy Tuck

What is a Tummy Tuck?

Abdominoplasty, or tummy tuck, is a cosmetic surgery designed to remove excess skin after massive weight loss or liposuction as well as firm muscles in the abdominal wall. The goal of a tummy tuck is to return a patient’s abdomen to a firmer, tighter contour. This is achieved by excising excess skin, removing excess fat, and repairing weakened or separated muscles, giving the patient a flatter, smoother, more contoured abdomen.

Tummy Tuck Before & After

  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After
  • Before-Tummy Tuck
    After-Tummy Tuck
    Before Tummy Tuck After

What is The Cost for a Tummy Tuck?

The cost for a standard Tummy Tuck at Syracuse Plastic Surgery is $8,800.00.

Who is a Good Candidate for Abdominoplasty?

The tummy tuck procedure, clinically termed abdominoplasty, is more about skin, muscle, and fat than weight loss. The best candidates have loose, inelastic skin on their lower stomach, and have found it almost impossible to tighten this area with dietary changes and exercise. It is becoming increasingly popular for men to also undergo a tummy tuck to tone their abdominal muscles and trim their waistline.

Good candidates generally have either gained and then lost a large amount of weight, had children, or are simply dealing with increasing laxity of the stomach muscles and tissues due to aging or genetics. Weight gain and pregnancy both create situations where the stomach skin and support tissue are stretched for a period of time. When the person loses the weight, the skin often cannot return to its former degree of tightness. These conditions can also cause the abdominal muscles to separate; this makes it hard for the muscles to keep the area flat, as they did before separation.

Women who are considering having another child, however, a tummy tuck will have to wait. The effects of pregnancy will negate the results of your surgery. Also, if a person plans to lose more weight, a tummy tuck should be delayed, as the weight loss will create more loose skin. It’s important to remember, a tummy tuck is a body-contouring procedure, not a weight-loss procedure.

Types of Tummy Tucks

Dr. DeRoberts and Dr. Armenta performs a variety of tummy tuck procedures, based on the needs of each patient. There are traditional/standard tummy tucks, mini tummy tucks, extended tummy tucks, and circumferential tummy tucks.

  • Mini Tummy Tuck – Here the hip incision is usually somewhat shorter and skin is lifted only to the navel area. The second incision is not made. Mini tummy tucks are ideal for patients who don’t have large amounts of loose skin and who still have good abdominal muscle strength.
  • Extended Tummy Tuck – The goal here is to expand the target from the abdomen to also include the “love handles.” To do this, the hip-to-hip incision is extended behind the hips.
  • Circumferential Tummy Tuck – This is also known as a body lift. Circumferential tummy tucks are often performed on patients who have had gastric bypass surgery. The weight is gone, but now the patient is discouraged by the amount of loose, hanging skin that remains. The incision in a circumferential tuck usually wraps around the entire waste, allowing the largest amount of skin to be pulled down and trimmed. Circumferential is the most drastic form of tummy tuck and has the most amount of scarring.

Tummy Tuck Before & After

Tummy Tuck Before & After Syracuse

Tummy Tuck Procedure

Variations in this procedure usually involve the length of the main incision. The operation may take from 2 to 6 hours. In a traditional tummy tuck, Dr. DeRoberts or Dr. Armenta makes one incision that runs very low on the abdomen, generally below the bikini line so that the scar is hidden. The length of the incision depends upon the amount of skin needing to excised. A second incision is made around the belly button to address the upper abdomen.

After the incisions are made the upper abdominal skin is pulled away from the muscle beneath. The underlying muscles are pulled together and stitched into place for a firmer abdomen and narrower waist. Fat pockets may be removed with minor liposuction at this point. The skin is then stretched downward and over the newly tightened muscles, excess skin is trimmed, and the navel is brought back through a new hole into its natural position. The incisions are then closed.

Can you combine a tummy tuck with other procedures?

Tummy tucks do not need to be stand-alone procedures. Often, after a woman has her abdomen tightened after childbirth, she can then feel as if her breasts sag as well. Rather than having a separate procedure for a breast lift, it can be combined with a tummy tuck. Liposuction is often a part of most tummy tuck procedures, but it can be extended to the thighs and buttocks when combined with a tummy tuck. Thigh lifts and butt lifts can extend the contour improvements to these areas.

Male Tummy Tuck Before & After

Abdominoplasty Recovery

The degree of recovery correlates somewhat to the type of tuck you’ve had. However, tummy tucks are major surgeries and involve a good deal of tissue excision and muscle re-positioning. This creates tissue trauma and requires recovery time. Patients will need to rest for around two weeks, and may need up to six weeks before returning to full gym activities.

You’ll need to arrange help around the house, as you won’t be able to lift more than just a couple pounds. Any lifting of more weight or strenuous exercise will need to wait for at least six weeks. You will have soreness along your incisions for weeks, and this can stretch to months in some cases.

Schedule a Consultation

For more information about Tummy Tuck and to see if you are a good candidate, contact Syracuse Plastic Surgery. Call our Syracuse office at (315) 299-5313 to schedule a consultation.

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