How Do You Avoid Tension on the Incision During Healing?

In a tummy tuck, the external flesh is repositioned - I'm curious about closing of the incision and how tension/pulling is avoided. Is it usually closed with sutures or staples? Won't gravity (or any physical positions that either arch the spine or stretch the skin upwards) affect the scar healing? Also (similarly), what is the result if too much flesh were to be removed, causing an upright physical posture to pull too much on the sutures/staples? Hypothetically.

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4 Doctor Answers | Asked by cxv in Vancouver

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Reducing incision closure tension is important for better scars.

All Plastic Surgeons try to minimize tension on the skin closure with every procedure performed. This has a little bit of influence on the scars final appearance. We all have our preferred approach. I choose to use progressive tension sutures and place most of the tension on the deeper layers rather than the skin. After surgery there is always a period of tissue tension adjustment as your posture gradually straightens. The skin and incision will stretch during this time as well. In most... more

Incision tension

With a plastic surgical closure of a wound, care is usually taken to close the would in layers taking tension off of the skin closure. This will help give you a good scar. I also will usually place steri strips on the incision which helps remove the most superficial tension as well as put pressure on the scar which can help. Gary Hall,MD

Gary Hall, MD

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Kansas City Plastic Surgeon

www.hallmd.com

Controlling tension on tummy tuck scar for better healing

Tension on a wound is one of the biggest contributors to poor scar formation, so methods like the progressive tension suture method help by placing the tension away from the wound edges. This uses a series of stitches under the flap that distribute the tension on deeper stronger layers that the skin. It also helps minimize the need for drain tubes. We also use tape on the incision for about 6 weeks which also helps reduce tension.

Tummy tuck wound tension

The tension of a proper tummy tuck closer is placed along the superficial fascial layer - this is closed with a heavy, absorbably barbed suture in my practice. The skin itself is on no tension when the wound is closed. This technique has yielded high quality scars.