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Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty) Surgery – Toronto
What is Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)Toronto?
Also known as tummy tuck surgery, abdominoplasty is a general term for procedures designed to tone and reshape the abdominal wall. Whether you have lost massive weight, or are simply tired of wearing ‘mom’ jeans after pregnancy has stretched out your abdomen, abdominoplasty may be your only option. Abdominoplasty is not just about correcting excess skin. It may be combined with liposuction to remove excess fat deposits, and it may involve tightening of the fascia and muscle of the abdominal wall to create a more appealing silhouette. Some patients also undergo breast surgery with an abdominoplasty, a combination referred to as a ‘mommy makeover’.
Who is a good candidate for a Tummy Tuck?
Best candidates for abdominoplasty have plateaued following weight-loss. Abdominoplasty results may be compromised if you later lost substantial weight (>20% body weight) or conversely gained weight (e.g. pregnancy). You need not be at an ideal weight-we have obtained beautiful results in over-weight patients. The key is that you have enough laxity in the skin and abdominal wall to justify the scar necessary from abdominoplasty. Beyond the obvious cosmetic benefits of this surgery, you may gain relief from skin chafing and rashes, and may achieve improved performance and enjoyment of athletics by relief from sloppy skin or from more effective alignment of your abdominal muscles. Many patients describe relief from back pain, and studies have demonstrated improvements in stress incontinence (peeing when you sneeze or laugh).
Abdominoplasty Toronto Consultation Essentials
You should delay your consultation until you are done having children and have reached your realistic goals from weight-loss. Do not strain to lose maximum weight in the hope that we will permanently trap you in a smaller body with a tummy tuck.
The most significant negative aspect to abdominoplasty is the scar, so you should take the time to understand how noticeable your scars will be. You should gain an understanding for what effect tummy tuck will have on your actual size- depending on where they carry excess weight, patients can be disappointed that their belt size is unchanged after tummy tuck surgery. This surgery will firm and reshape your abdomen, but we aren’t removing the organs and fat inside your abdominal cavity and so your size change is limited to the amount of outer skin/fat we can remove.
You should consider what effect a trimmer abdomen will have on your opinion of other body areas (e.g. mons, hips, thighs), and be sure to ask us about these areas at your consultation.
Alternatives to Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)
Liposuction would be our preference for reshaping your abdomen, but it has limited application where there are loose tissues. Laser liposuction is sometimes touted as a better solution for tightening loose skin, but we are impressed by studies that show no advantage when laser is used on one side of the body, and traditional liposuction on the other.
Costs
Fees for abdominoplasty at our Toronto Cosmetic Plastic Surgery office (including facility and anesthetist) range from $5-12,000, depending on the extent of surgery that is necessary.
Preparation for Tummy Tuck Surgery Toronto
You should be healthy and at a stable weight before surgery. We provide detailed written instructions on preparation, and will review these with you well before surgery. We provide a compression garment (Velcro and fabric belt) for your use after surgery.
The Operation
Caption A
In abdominoplasty, an incision is usually made across the pubic area and around the navel. Skin in the shaded area is separated from the abdominal wall.
Caption B
To tighten the abdominal wall, the surgeon brings loose underlying tissue and muscle together with sutures.
Caption C
Abdominal skin is drawn downward, and the excess is removed. A small opening is made to bring the navel through.
Caption D
The postoperative patient shown with resultant scars.
A feature of our technique is expertise in the use of progressive tension sutures for wound closure. Since adopting this technique over 10 years ago in our Toronto Cosmetic Surgery practice, we have eliminated our use of drains, we have avoided complications like venous thrombosis, we have achieved three-dimensional contouring of the abdominal wall and our improvement in scar location and appearance has been spectacular.
No two abdominoplasty procedures are alike, and achieving artistry in this procedure requires that we modify our plan to match your unique requirements. Some patients are offered the horse-shoe Abdominoplasty or a lower Abdominoplasty, some require additional liposuction, some need full Abdominoplasty with repositioning of the belly button, some also need tightening of the abdominal wall fascia, some need Abdominoplasty in combination with an insurance-covered panniculectomy, and some need a circumferential procedure that lifts the thigh and buttock tissues (see Body Lifts). Again, it all depends on your unique requirements.
Safety and Risks
The risks of abdominoplasty are those typical of surgery in general. Progressive tension sutures (see above) will eliminate the routine need for drains and decrease the risk of fluid collections under the skin (seroma and hematoma). They may also decrease the risk of clots forming in leg veins as mobility is easier after surgery and there is no need for a tight belt that may restrict venous flow from the legs.
Recovery process
If there is no fascial plication, the surgery is relatively painless, with tightness being the primary complaint. Most patients will return to normal work duties within two weeks.
Fascial plication can be painful, and the abdominal wall will be sensitive to sneezing, getting up from bed and other activities that strain the abdomen. Light duties will be possible by two weeks, but avoiding abdominal strain for six weeks is recommended.
Results
You will be stunned by your results even at your first post-op visit, but your final beautiful results won’t be evident until 9 months after surgery because of swelling (some fluid gets temporarily trapped in the tissues above the incision). We recommend delaying beach vacations until 6 weeks after surgery.
Bottom Line
We believe that we offer the best tummy tuck surgery results in Toronto. Come in for a consultation, and you will leave wiser, and perhaps scheduled for a beautiful transformation.
Our Professional Affiliations
Abdominoplasty Photo Gallery
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Liposuction is not inherently part of abdominoplasty. Some patients don't need it, some patients will benefit but decline for various reasons (added cost, risk if blood supply a concern e.g. smoking history). In this case, liposuction was a valuable addition along the waistline.
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tummy tuck should be performed after child-bearing is complete. This patient had back pain prior to surgery (tummy tuck + liposuction hips) and the repair of her abdominal fascia (fascial plication) provided relief of her back pain.
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The blood supply to abdominal skin is temporarily decreased by abdominoplasty, and this prevents abdominal etching with liposuction or excision except down the midline. This example demonstrates an athletic physique accomplished with abdominoplasty. Liposuction can be performed at 6 months if further contouring is desired.
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When one body part gets smaller adjacent areas look bigger. We counsel our patients on the risk/opportunity for relative changes in size after body contour surgery. This example demonstrates the relative increase in breast size that occurred after abdominoplasty and liposuction hips.
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Our use of internal sutures in tummy tuck surgery allows safer healing without drains, better scar quality and position, and waistline cinching ('snatched') with the use of contouring sutures.
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Weight-loss can be a life-saving achievement, but it has physical and emotional consequences. Body contour surgery that addresses the 3-dimensional deformity following major weight-loss is a powerful tool for recovery.
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When there is excessive skin in the upper abdomen, a traditional abdominoplasty will not be sufficient. A second-stage upper abdominoplasty is necessary to correct this area.
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A common post-partum problem abdomen has loose skin in lower abdomen only, but stretched out abdominal wall above and below the umbilicus. The 'umbilical float' abdominoplasty does not require a cut around the belly-button, but still allows us to remove the excess skin and tighten the abs up to the ribcage.
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An abdominal cavity with excess fat is like a beach-ball, and if the front is compressed too much (e.g. fascial plication) there may be bulging out at the sides, and a loss of waistline. If you do not have abdominal obesity, the waistline will be enhanced, as in this example
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If the area of stretched out skin can be captured by an abdomnoplasty, stretch marks can be 'cured'. Sometimes a higher scar will be used if it wil allow a more thorough treatment of the stretched out skin.
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This patient required repair of a rectus diastasis as well as tightening of the abdominal fascia over the rectus and oblique muscles.
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This patient already had scars from breast reduction under her breasts, and wanted to avoid scars around her belly button. We performed upper (reverse) and lower abdominoplasty to give her the best possible result without increasing her scar burden.
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An abdominoplasty coupled with a midline excision and excisions adjacent to the mons is termed 'Fleur-d- Lis' based on the shape of the excised tissue. It is a popular option if there is a pre-existing midline scar, and if there is lax tissue in the
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We have safely combined tummy tuck and breast augmentation for countless women. This can create an appearance that is better than before pregnancy.
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Much focus in tummy tuck is on the abdominal skin, but it should be appreciated that the excess tissues over the mons and anterior thigh are also corrected.
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We use sutures between skin and fascia to achieve a three-dimensional repair of the abdominal wall contour.
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The skin of the flanks and hips is thicker and more reactive than abdominal skin, and liposuction in those areas can accomplish similar effects to abdominoplasty without the scars. Fascial plication was not performed- this is not always necessary to achieve a beautiful result.
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The skin of the flanks and hips is thicker and more reactive than abdominal skin, and liposuction in those areas can accomplish similar effects to abdominoplasty without the scars. Fascial plication was not performed- this is not always necessary to achieve a beautiful result.
- Abdominoplasty
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The skin of the flanks and hips is thicker and more reactive than abdominal skin, and liposuction in those areas can accomplish similar effects to abdominoplasty without the scars. Fascial plication was not performed- this is not always necessary to achieve a beautiful result.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you get multiple tummy tucks?
Some patients have massive skin excess with skin breakdown and other problems. It is often best to do two tummy tucks- the first to remove the damaged or infected tissue, and the second to fine-tune the results. Tummy tucks can also be repeated if there is a substantial weight gain/loss, as following a pregnancy.
What is the recovery time on a tummy tuck?
You can take care of yourself the day after surgery. If muscle-tightening (a.k.a. fascial plication) is performed, it will be two to three weeks before you can resume full daily activities, and 6 weeks until a return to the gym. If no muscle repair is performed, normal daily activities will be possible within a week, and back to the gym in three weeks.
How long does a Tummy Tuck last?
Provided that you don’t gain/lose substantial weight (e.g. pregnancy, greater than 20% weight fluctuation), you should not need to repeat a tummy tuck.
Can I get a tummy tuck after losing a lot of weight?
It is best to do body contour surgery like a tummy tuck when your weight has been stable for several months. Rapid weight-loss may be a sign of illness or be associated with malnutrition, and you need optimal nutrition to heal well from surgery. A tummy tuck after weight-loss does nothing to prevent you from gaining weight again, although you may put on weight in a more cosmetically-agreeable location.
Can I get a tummy tuck after giving birth?
Even if you have had several pregnancies and know your skin is not ‘bouncing back’, a tummy tuck immediately after pregnancy is not generally recommended. A six-month recovery after delivery is a safe interval to wait before undergoing tummy tuck surgery.