Abdominoplasty or "tummy tuck" is a cosmetic surgery procedure used to make the

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the gut, belly, tummy, midriff, tucky, or stomach) is the front part of the torso between the thorax (chest) and pelvis in humans and in other vertebrates. The area occupied by the abdomen is called the abdominal ...

thinner and more firm. The surgery involves the removal of excess skin and

fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers specif ...

from the middle and lower abdomen in order to tighten the

muscle Muscle is a soft tissue, one of the four basic types of animal tissue. There are three types of muscle tissue in vertebrates: skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and smooth muscle. Muscle tissue gives skeletal muscles the ability to muscle contra ...

and

fascia A fascia (; : fasciae or fascias; adjective fascial; ) is a generic term for macroscopic membranous bodily structures. Fasciae are classified as superficial, visceral or deep, and further designated according to their anatomical location. ...

of the abdominal wall. This type of surgery is usually sought by patients with loose or sagging tissues, that develop after pregnancy or major

weight loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...

History

Modern abdominoplasties were developed starting in the 1960s. Heavier populations have led to increased demand for the surgeries, while technological advancements have improved their quality.

Types of Abdominoplasty Surgery

Abdominoplasty surgeries vary in scope and are frequently subdivided into categories. Depending on the extent of the surgery, a complete abdominoplasty can take from 1 to 5 hours. A partial abdominoplasty (mini-tuck abdominoplasty) can be completed between 1 and 2 hours. On the other hand a fleur-de-lis abdominoplasty can take up to 7 hours.

Complete abdominoplasty

In general, a complete or full abdominoplasty follows these steps: # An incision is made from hip to hip just above the pubic area. # Another incision is made to free the navel from the surrounding skin. # The skin is detached from the abdominal wall to reveal the muscles and fascia to be tightened. The muscle fascia wall is tightened with sutures. #

Liposuction Liposuction, or simply lipo, is a type of fat-removal procedure used in plastic surgery. Evidence does not support an effect on weight beyond a couple of months and does not appear to affect obesity-related problems. In the United States, lip ...

is often used to refine the transition zones of the abdominal sculpture. # A dressing and sometimes a

compression garment Compression garments are pieces of clothing that fit tightly around the skin. In medical contexts, compression garments provide support for people who have to stand for long periods or have poor Circulatory system, circulation. These come in va ...

are applied and any excess

fluid In physics, a fluid is a liquid, gas, or other material that may continuously motion, move and Deformation (physics), deform (''flow'') under an applied shear stress, or external force. They have zero shear modulus, or, in simpler terms, are M ...

from the site is drained.

Partial abdominoplasty

A partial or mini abdominoplasty proceeds as follows: # A smaller incision is made. # The skin and fat of the lower abdomen are detached in a more limited fashion from the muscle fascia. The skin is stretched down and excess skin removed. # Sometimes the belly button stalk is divided from the muscle below and the belly button slid down lower on the abdominal wall. # Sometimes a portion of the abdominal muscle fascia wall is tightened. # Liposuction is often used to contour the transition zone. # The flap is stitched back into place.

Extended abdominoplasty

An extended abdominoplasty is a complete abdominoplasty plus a lateral thigh lift. The resulting scar runs from the posterior axillary line (when placing one's open hands on the hips, the thumbs lie along the posterior axillary line). The operation does all of the abdominal contouring of a complete abdominoplasty and allows further improvement of the flank (waist), as well as smoothing the contour of the upper lateral thigh.

High lateral tension tummy tuck

This is an advanced technique that takes a little more than four and half hours to perform. Conventional abdominoplasty tightens muscles in a vertical line. In this new method, known as high lateral tension abdominoplasty, in addition to vertical-line tightening, muscles are tightened horizontally. The result with this technique is a dramatically flat abdomen with significantly better-defined waistline.

Floating abdominoplasty or FAB technique

This new technique, also known as an extended mini abdominoplasty, allows for tightening and shaping through a smaller incision that is not placed around the belly button. Through this smaller incision, excess skin is removed and the belly button is temporarily detached, floating above the muscles during this process. The muscles are tightened and reshaped from sternum to pubic area. The skin is then tightened and the belly button is reattached, or moved down one or two cm if desired. Liposuction may also be performed to achieve desirable results.

Circumferential abdominoplasty

A circumferential abdominoplasty is an extended abdominoplasty plus a buttock lift. The resulting scar runs all the way around the body, and the operation is also called a Belt Lipectomy or lower body lift. This operation is most appropriate for patients who have undergone massive weight loss.

Combination procedures

An abdominoplasty can be combined with liposuction to make a Lipotuck, which performs body contouring around the hips, thighs, and buttocks. It can also be combined with

liposuction Liposuction, or simply lipo, is a type of fat-removal procedure used in plastic surgery. Evidence does not support an effect on weight beyond a couple of months and does not appear to affect obesity-related problems. In the United States, lip ...

contouring, breast reduction, breast lift, or occasionally

hysterectomy Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of the uterus and cervix. Supracervical hysterectomy refers to removal of the uterus while the cervix is spared. These procedures may also involve removal of the ovaries (oophorectomy), fallopian tubes ( salpi ...

, depending on the reason for the hysterectomy. A popular name for multiple surgeries performed in the same surgical session including a cosmetic breast procedure with or without liposuction and an abdominoplasty is called a "mommy makeover".

Risks

Abdominoplasty is considered to be a safe procedure, but the risk of complication is higher than in other cosmetic surgeries. Possible complications include

seroma A seroma is a pocket of clear serous fluid (filtered blood plasma). They may sometimes develop in the body after surgery, particularly after breast surgery, abdominal surgery, and reconstructive surgery. They can be diagnosed by physical sign ...

s, infection,

necrosis Necrosis () is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. The term "necrosis" came about in the mid-19th century and is commonly attributed to German pathologist Rudolf Virchow, who i ...

of the skin, and

hematoma A hematoma, also spelled haematoma, or blood suffusion is a localized bleeding outside of blood vessels, due to either disease or trauma including injury or surgery and may involve blood continuing to seep from broken capillaries. A hematoma is ...

Related procedures

, also known as lipoplasty, is a type of surgery that removes

from the human body in an attempt to change its shape. Abdominoplasty is one type of body contouring, which is plastic surgery performed on different parts of the body with the aim of improving the shape and tone of the underlying tissue that supports fat. Breast reduction, or reduction mammoplasty, is the cosmetic surgery used in resizing the breast, in women with oversized breasts and men with gynecomastia. This type of surgery is performed to treat a breast condition known as

hypertrophy Hypertrophy is the increase in the volume of an organ or tissue due to the enlargement of its component cells. It is distinguished from hyperplasia, in which the cells remain approximately the same size but increase in number. Although hypertro ...

, which refers to oversized breasts. This condition usually occurs in both breasts and commonly develops at

puberty Puberty is the process of physical changes through which a child's body matures into an adult body capable of sexual reproduction. It is initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads: the ovaries in a female, the testicles i ...

or immediately after. Breast lift, also referred to as mastopexy, is the surgical procedure that removes the excess skin and tightens the surrounding tissue of the breast, resulting in raising and firming the breast. Mastopexies carry a certain degree of risks as any other type of surgery does. Hysterectomies are sometimes performed with abdominoplasty. A hysterectomy consists in removing the

uterus The uterus (from Latin ''uterus'', : uteri or uteruses) or womb () is the hollow organ, organ in the reproductive system of most female mammals, including humans, that accommodates the embryonic development, embryonic and prenatal development, f ...

and it may be complete (when the body, fundus and cervix are removed) or partial (when only the uterine body is surgically removed). This procedure is normally performed by gynecologists and it is one of the most common gynecological surgeries. This type of surgery is used to treat adenomyosis, some benign tumors, and cancers of the ovaries, uterus, or cervix. Some

trans men A trans man or transgender man is a man who was assigned female at birth. Trans men have a male gender identity, and many trans men undergo Gender transition, medical and social transition to alter their appearance in a way that aligns with th ...

also choose to undergo a hysterectomy.

Image gallery

File:Vishal Kapoor MD TummyTuck Incision.jpg, Making the initial incision across the lower abdomen. The incision is placed in the bikini line and runs from hip to hip. File:Abdominoplasty final reconstruction of umbilicus (belly button).jpg, The final sutures securing the umbilicus (also known as "belly button") into its new position after an abdominoplasty File:Abdominoplasty skin and fat removal.jpg, The removal of nearly 100 square centimeters of skin from the abdomen of a 40-year-old woman during an abdominoplasty surgery (also known as a "tummy tuck") File:Vishal Kapoor MD TummyTuck Suture.jpg, Placing the final sutures following an abdominoplasty procedure

References

{{reflist Plastic surgical procedures Surgical removal procedures