Get rid of saggy skin
After weight loss or pregnancy, your belly may be more flabby than before. If this bothers you or bothers you, you can consider a tummy tuck. What exactly does this operation involve?
The complaints about an altered abdominal wall differ. You are ashamed of your partner or there are practical objections. Your clothes pinch or you get back pain due to an incorrect load on your lumbar muscles. Hygiene problems sometimes arise with a grease apron, because your skin will stain in the lower abdominal fold.
normal weight
A tummy tuck surgery is not an option to lose weight. If you are overweight, you should therefore first try to reach a normal weight. Being overweight increases the risk of complications and adversely affects the outcome of surgery.
The plastic surgeon only performs a tummy tuck if he expects good results. In addition, you must be in good physical condition.
Remove excess skin
A tummy tuck is always performed under general anesthesia. In advance, it is noted on the skin exactly which part needs to be removed and where the scar will be located. Following the marked lines, the skin is incised and loosened far above the navel. The skin around the navel is also loosened.
The skin is pulled taut downwards and the excess of fat and skin is removed. If necessary, the abdominal muscles are strengthened with sutures. Then the skin is sutured. Usually drains are left in the wound. These are thin plastic tubes with a bottle at the end, which suck out any wound fluid and some leaking blood. The drains can be removed after 24 to 48 hours.
After the operation
The abdomen is of course very sensitive for the first few days, but the pain can be treated well with the help of painkillers. Because the skin has been pulled smooth, there may be some tension on the wound edges.
The stitches are removed after two weeks. The skin may still feel unnaturally tight, stiff or ‘deaf’ in the first few months, but that is completely normal.
In the beginning, the scars are still red and sometimes thickened, but over time they naturally become lighter and flatter. With a tummy tuck, the scar is often quite long and usually runs just above the pubic hair.
Wedge Excision Abdominal Wall
Are you seriously overweight and unable to lose weight? Do you have skin blemishes from your apron? Then the plastic surgeon can perform a wedge excision of your abdominal wall.
The doctor only removes your overhanging apron. It doesn’t loosen the rest of the skin any further and it doesn’t pull anything tight. You then have a relatively small wound surface with less chance of complications. That’s a big advantage. A disadvantage, however, is that the belly remains fat. Sometimes the doctor also needs to remove your belly button.
Thanks to Arthur Ludlage, physician/director MediConsult.
