Santa Barbara Arm Lift doctors
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Brent Moelleken, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon
120 S Spalding Dr Suite 110, Beverly Hills |
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2 answers |
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Douglas J. Mackenzie, MD
Santa Barbara Plastic Surgeon
225 W Pueblo St Suite A, Santa Barbara |
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1 answer |
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Michael Sundine, MD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon
1640 Newport Blvd #450, Costa Mesa |
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David L. Buchanan, MD
Santa Barbara Plastic Surgeon
427 W. Pueblo St. Suite A, Santa Barbara |
Recent Answers
I had Gastric bypass surgery about 8 years ago and lost 100lbs. Since then, I’ve experienced “loose skin”…EVERYWHERE!! I hate it!! I’m just as self conscious in clothes as I was 100 pounds ago. I’d like a complete body lift but that is definitely NOT in my budget. I’ve been considering mesotherapy or some other non surgical alternative on my arms because I’d like to at least feel comfortable in short sleeves (since the lower half of my body is a DEFINITE case of “nip/tuck”). I’m looking to tighten the skin, I’m sure I could afford to rid my arms of some fat, but primarily it’s the loose skin I’d like to focus on. Any recommendations? Experiences? Comments?
When you have loose skin after loosing a lot of weight after bariatric surgery, only a surgical procedure will effectively improve your contour. Yes, there will be scars, and yes, these are expensive and serious procedures. Non surgical methods of tightening have negligible effects even on people who have not had bariatric surgery, so trying to correct the loose skin on someone who has had massive weight loss after bariatric surgery with these methods is an absolute waste of money.
Anyone considering bariatric surgery needs to understand what happens to the skin after losing so much weight, and plan accordingly. These procedures are not typically covered by insurance. They can be time consuming surgeries and multiple procedures may need to be done in stages.
I will be getting an Arm Lift (Brachioplasty) in around 6 months. I want my arms to have a nice toned look like they used to have. Should I start weight training again before the surgery, or wait until after the procedure and the skin is tightened? Which one will get me the best, toned look?
The very best results come in patients who are at their baseline weights. That is the weight they "live at", not necessarily the weight they would like to be.
The reason for this is that the baseline weight is how the patient spends most of their life, and the surgery should be optimized for that state, not for an artificially high or low weight, or an artificially high or low degree of physical conditioning.
Of course it is best for a patient to maximize the health of their diet, and of their exercise program as a part of a healthy lifestyle. If they choose to start working out regularly and plan on sustaining that, then I feel they should stabilize before undergoing surgery. It may be that more pounds will come off...and stay off!
I do not believe patients should gain/lose weight etc. or work out specifically before/after the surgery if these measures are not sustainable. Otherwise the surgeon is operating on a patient who is in a "temporary" state.
I had Gastric bypass surgery about 8 years ago and lost 100lbs. Since then, I’ve experienced “loose skin”…EVERYWHERE!! I hate it!! I’m just as self conscious in clothes as I was 100 pounds ago. I’d like a complete body lift but that is definitely NOT in my budget. I’ve been considering mesotherapy or some other non surgical alternative on my arms because I’d like to at least feel comfortable in short sleeves (since the lower half of my body is a DEFINITE case of “nip/tuck”). I’m looking to tighten the skin, I’m sure I could afford to rid my arms of some fat, but primarily it’s the loose skin I’d like to focus on. Any recommendations? Experiences? Comments?
Minimally invasive skin tightening simply doesn't, unfortunately, offer the amount of tightening massive weight loss patients need.
Of the different types of arm lifts, there are lifts performed in the armpit crease and lifts that extend down the arm.
For more severe problems, the lift with an incision extending down the arm provides the best solution (since it decreases the circumference).
The trade-off is a scar and nice arms vs. no scar but excess skin in the arms, so patients should talk to their plastic surgeon about each of these options. The incisions on the arms do take a while to heal, but patients who are carefully selected are almost uniformly happy with the results.