Modifying Existing Abdominoplasty Techniques for Natural-Looking Results

Abdominoplasty can resolve excess skin and tissue and loose musculature that so often remain following pregnancy or rapid weight loss.* Traditional abdominoplasty techniques have been effective for hundreds of thousands of patients over the years, but some patients’ results look too obviously surgically altered, presenting with a very flat look that lacks the soft, graceful contouring that should be present in a natural abdomen.* Modifications to traditional techniques based on experience and research can achieve superior results for more patients.*

Aesthetic Considerations in Abdominoplasty

There are a number of factors that contribute to the subtle contour variations that define a natural tummy. The best plastic surgeons take steps to ensure that these aesthetic goals are not only met but exceeded during tummy tuck surgery:*

1. Realistic Curves: Healthy men and women who are at or near their target weight have some natural softness to the abdomen, unless they’re deeply committed to achieving the ever-elusive “six-pack abs.” While many tummy tuck surgeries focus on flatter and tighter as the end goal, it is also important to recreate the anatomical nuances of a beautiful belly.
2. Smooth Transitions: It’s not uncommon for patients to see a clear and awkward transition right at their incision line. This is most often due to an imprecise incision repair combined with uneven tissue depth. The transition should be level instead; this can be achieved through a gradual transition from thicker tissue to thinner.*
3. Consistent Skin Tone: Equal attention must be given to lax skin through both the upper and the lower abdomen. Some tummy tuck procedures focus solely on the lower abdomen, leaving the appearance of a too-taut area below the navel with visibly loose skin and tissue above.
4. Scar Placement: A too-high or uneven abdominoplasty scar is a common reason why patients seek out abdominoplasty revision. Thoughtful incision planning and execution results in a smooth, flat and inconspicuous scar that’s placed low enough to be easily hidden by everyday clothing (and ideally is hidden even by more revealing clothing and swimsuits as well).*

Achieving Beautiful Final Results

A higher level of refinement during abdominoplasty is possible through the incorporation of liposuction.* Some surgeons may schedule lipo after healing from the tummy tuck has completed, but recent studies reveal that performing both procedures simultaneously delivers a superior outcome with low complication rates.

Liposuction allows for greater contouring capability than tissue dissection alone.* Lipo can also be used to gradually taper the waist and flanks toward the midline in order to better accentuate the now-firmer belly.*

The focus of an abdominoplasty procedure needs to be on correction of all cosmetic concerns in the abdominal area while re-creating natural contours. Making simple, specific adaptations to the traditional abdominoplasty technique can immediately take surgical results from dull to dynamic.*

*This information is for education only, and is not meant as a guarantee of results. Your results may vary.