When contemplating a tummy tuck to tighten your abdomen, you should consider if liposuction is necessary to remove excess fat. Many of our patients – especially post-pregnancy moms or people who have experienced significant weight loss – can benefit from combining abdominoplasty with liposuction to meet or exceed their cosmetic goals.
Are you on the fence about adding liposuction to your tummy tuck surgery? Gathering as much information as possible will help you make the best decision to get your desired results.
Why Choose a Tummy Tuck?
A tummy tuck is a life-changing procedure for many people. The operation tightens weakened abdominal muscles and lax skin around the midsection, making a taut tummy possible when diet and exercise have failed.
The best candidates for a tummy tuck are people who have lost significant weight and mothers who are finished bearing children. After weight loss, you may find yourself with excess skin on your midsection that stretched out as you gained fat, then never bounced back.
Even with extensive exercise and eating a balanced diet, folds of hanging skin won’t go away on their own. Similarly, moms often struggle with loose abdominal skin from pregnancy. You might also be contending with stretch marks in this area after weight fluctuations and childbearing.
What Happens During a Tummy Tuck?
Your abdominoplasty will take place while you are resting under general anesthesia. During a full tummy tuck – the most commonly performed type of this surgery – Dr. de la Pedraja will make a low horizontal incision from one hipbone to the other. This incision will allow him to lift the skin and expose the abdominal muscles for tightening and repair. Then, he will reposition your navel and remove excess skin to achieve the most aesthetically appealing and natural-looking result possible. Finally, he’ll re-drape your remaining skin over your repaired abdominal wall and suture the incisions closed to ensure minimal scarring.
Should You Add Liposuction?
Liposuction eliminates stubborn, exercise-resistant fat in targeted areas like the abdomen, buttocks, thighs, and upper arms.
Most liposuction candidates have already reached a healthy weight and want to remove bulges that they feel detract from their appearance. However, they still struggle with stubborn fat that sticks around, no matter what diet and exercise routine they try.
It’s crucial to note that liposuction is not a weight loss treatment. It is strictly a body sculpting procedure employed as a stand-alone procedure or combined with others to enhance results.
What Happens During Liposuction?
Liposuction is less invasive than abdominoplasty, performed under a general anesthetic or twilight sedation.
Dr. de la Pedraja begins by making small incisions near the target area to remove excess fat pads. These tiny incisions are entry points for a thin tube called a cannula. He will insert this device through the incisions to agitate and remove unwanted fat cells via suction. Then, he closes the wounds with sutures.
When to Combine Abdominoplasty With Liposuction
Combining liposuction with a tummy tuck is a typical body sculpting technique. You will simultaneously address many cosmetic concerns, like eliminating excess skin, repairing weak abdominal muscles, and removing stubborn fat. Because these issues so frequently co-occur, addressing them during one surgical session reduces risk, recovery, and downtime.
You can also save money when addressing these multiple issues at once. Dr. de la Pedraja may also reduce incisions by combining the two procedures.Schedule your consultation today to learn if you are a candidate for tummy tuck surgery and liposuction.