Tummy Tuck Surgery

Abdominoplasty, as tummy tuck surgery is medically known, removes folds of skin left behind after you’ve lost a lot of weight and tightens stretched skin and weakened muscles. In most cases, the results are long lasting, providing that you follow a balanced diet and maintain regular exercise. You can have a flatter, trimmer abdomen and, although the scars are permanent, they will fade in time and can normally be hidden inside the underwear.

A tummy tuck operation will take place under general anesthetic and will require a short stay in hospital. There are three types of procedure, which will be discussed between you and your surgeon at your preliminary consultation. What is usually referred to as the Standard Tummy Tuck will start by making incisions into your abdomen, above the bikini line. Your belly button is then removed from the surrounding tissue. The surgeon then separates the skin from the abdominal wall, thus revealing the vertical muscles of your abdomen. These are then pulled together and fixed in a new, tighter position. The skin and fat is then stretched downwards and any superfluous tissue removed before a new hole is cut for the belly button to be replaced and the flatter and younger looking tummy sutured up again. Your abdomen will be tightly strapped with bandages. In this procedure, you will have a small scar around your belly button and a longer one along your bikini line.

A Mini tummy tuck is the removing of the skin and fat below the belly button while an extended tummy tuck also removes excess skin and fat from your back.

Tummy tuck surgery will usually last around about two hours. Immediately after the surgery you might have a catheter to drain your urine as well as tubes from the tummy draining your blood and fluids. You may also have pillows under your knees to keep them in a bent position – reducing the tension in your abdominal muscles and putting less strain on your sutures. Your abdomen will be swollen for the first few days and there will be considerable bruising but you can take painkillers to help alleviate the pain. Stitches used are often the dissolving type but those that are not will be removed five to seven days after the surgery and the deeper sutures after two or three weeks. You will need to wear a support garment for at least a month and perhaps even some dressings.

Tummy tuck surgery is frequently undertaken and generally quite safe. Possible complications, though, include reaction to the anesthetic, excessive bleeding or clotting, infection, damage to the internal organs or excessive scarring. It’s also possible that your belly button might be ‘off center’ – or even disappear completely. Generally, however, tummy tuck surgery produces excellent results, ending with a flatter and tighter abdomen.
In the USA, the average fees for a tummy tuck procedure are $6,400 but can range from around $5,000 to $9,000. In the United Kingdom the range is from £4,250 up to £5,370 – much will depend, of course, on the nature of the abdominoplasty taking place.

Tummy Tuck Surgery