tummy tucks

Considering a Tummy Tuck?

Childbearing can stretch your abdominal wall. Massive weight loss can cause the same thing. Unfortunately, diet and exercise do nothing to repair the underlying connective tissue, so it doesn’t snap back into shape. The stretched-out tissue has to be tightened and the excess skin removed surgically. The results are dramatic and permanent. If you desire a tummy tuck Scottsdale plastic surgeon Dr. Patti Flint can help.

If you are seeking to reduce your midsection, you may not know if you are a better candidate for liposuction or a tummy tuck (also known as an abdominoplasty). Liposuction decreases the thickness of any rolls you can pinch on your abdomen, but does not remove excess skin. A tummy tuck, on the other hand, can remove lax skin (and stretch marks) on your lower abdomen and tighten your abdominal wall.

For women considering a mommy makeover, this procedure removes the protuberance called a “mommy pillow” that can appear on your lower abdomen following childbearing. In addition, a standard (or full) tummy tuck can remove stretch marks on your lower abdomen.

Tummy Tuck at a Glance

A tummy tuck procedure removes excess skin and fat from your abdominal wall and tightens your contours through an incision low on your abdomen that runs hip bone to hip bone.

Take a look at Scottsdale tummy tuck before and after photos

What to Expect

An abdominoplasty in Scottsdale is designed to improve the overall shape of your abdomen. During the procedure, excess fat and skin are removed and the underlying muscles are tightened, resulting in a flatter midsection. A tummy tuck is often combined with liposuction for related areas.

Mini-tummy tucks result in a shorter scar, but remove a smaller amount of skin and only on the lower abdomen. Everyone considering an improvement to the abdomen wants the shortest scar possible. The shorter the scar, however, the less skin that can be removed. If you have skin excess or laxity above your belly button, a short-scar procedure is not the answer. It’s better to accept a longer scar and gain a more complete result than to go through surgery and still have some lax skin.

The women who can truly benefit from a mini-tummy tuck are few and far between. You can have no excess skin or muscular separation above your belly button and no stretch marks other than on the very low center of your abdomen. In this case, Dr. Flint can limit the scar in length (like a C-section scar), and no scar is required around your belly button. Well under 20 percent of tummy tuck patients are good candidates for a mini-tummy tuck.

Preparing for Liposuction Surgery

Dr. Flint meets with you to listen to your goals for the surgery. She examines you and then explains the procedure at length. All of your questions are answered. You can review samples of Dr. Flint’s work via before and after photos of her past patients. You are given information regarding fees and an opportunity to select a date for your surgery in Scottsdale.

Tummy Tuck Recovery Scottsdale

The procedure takes between 90 minutes and two hours, depending on your size and other factors. You will be given general anesthesia for the procedure. You must stay over one night in the recovery care center, but you are allowed to return home the morning following surgery. Discomfort is controlled with muscle relaxants and pain pills. Drainage tubes remain in place for approximately five days. You are allowed to shower two days after the drainage tubes are removed. No lifting is allowed for six weeks; however, most people return to work after two weeks. Swelling may persist for four to eight weeks. The final results are very dramatic, permanent, and satisfying.