Am I A Good Candidate for a Mini Tummy Tuck?

I am a 40 year old mother of 8 year old twins. I gained 70 lbs. during pregnancy and acquired excess skin and stretch marks in the lower abdomen region. I really don't want a huge scar, but would love the "crepey" skin removed and possibly some lipo in the upper abdomen region. I have interviewed several surgeons all making their own assessments. I am also not happy with my belly button and have been told it is herniated. How difficult is this to fix in a mini? I would love more opinions.

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11 Doctor Answers | Asked by Menlo Park489 in Menlo Park

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Mini Tummy Tuck

Unfortunately, a mini will address only a few of your concerns. A full TT will address the tissue and muscle above and below the umbilicus. You may have a hernia at the umbilicus and this should be repaired. Insurance may cover this part of the procedure, but not all of it.

Mini tummy tuck?

No you are not a good candidate for mini tummy tuck surgery. In my opinion, the mini tummy talk is an operation that produces very limited results and is very rarely indicated. It involves a shorter incision but does not address the majority of the abdominal wall issues present for most patients who present consultation. For example, the area of skin excised is quite small. The abdominal wall musculature is addressed below the umbilicus leaving the upper number wall... more

Liposuction may be better

According to your pictures, you do not seem to have excess abdominal skin. Neither mini nor a full tummy tuck will get rid of all your "crepey" skin, either one will leave you with a long scar. However, liposuction may yield the results you are looking to achieve and remove the slight bulge in the abdomen region. I recommend an in person consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon.

You would be unhappy with a mini-tummy tuck

Thanks for the pictures. You have laxity above your belly button. Not only would a mini-tummy tuck not address this muscle weakness, it can often worsen the appearance of your abdomen by causing more upper abdominal bulging when you repair only the lower portion. If you go to my website you will find an animation library of procedures which will describe what is involved in a mini-tummy tuck.

A full tummy tuck would be the appropriate procedure

You have stretched out and lax skin both below and above your belly button which would therefore make you a good candidate for a full tummy tuck. Repair of your hernia and recontouring of your belly button can be performed at the same time. A mini tummy tuck would only address the skin below the belly button - and you would be very dissatisfied with the outcome.

Mini tummy tucks give very limited results.

Based on your photos, you would be served much better with a full tummy tuck. A mini tummy tuck only removes a small amount of skin from the lower abdomen and corrects laxity of the lower abdominal wall only. Based on your photos, you have significant laxity of both your upper and lower abdominal wall. Correcting only the lower abdomen with a mini tummy tuck would also give your abdomen an unbalanced appearance.

Mini-tummy tuck vs full tummy tuck

Based on your photo, I would recommend a full tummy tuck to remove more skin/stretch marks and to completely tighten your abdominal wall weakness(rectus diastasis). If you have an umbilical hernia, then this can be easily repaired at the time of a full tummy tuck which offers the best exposure or visualization of this area. There isn't that much difference in the scar between a mini-tummy tuck and a full tummy tuck. The scar will be a few centimeters longer on each side,... more

NOT a Good Candidate for a Mini Tummy Tuck

Regarding:"Am I A Good Candidate for a Mini Tummy Tuck? I am a 40 year old mother of 8 year old twins. I gained 70 lbs. during pregnancy and acquired excess skin and stretch marks in the lower abdomen region. I really don't want a huge scar, but would love the "crepey" skin removed and possibly some lipo in the upper abdomen region. I have interviewed several surgeons all making their own assessments. I am also not happy with my belly button and have been told it is... more

Full tummy tuck for you

In your case there is no role for a mini tummy tuck because you need full abdominal muscle tightening and can get all the bad skin removed from below the umbilicus in the full TT.

Full tummy tuck

You are a much better candidate for a full tummy tuck. It owuld get rid of most of the stretch marks below the umbilicus and would tighten the muscle the full length.

Steven Wallach, MD

12 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

PHOTOS and VIDEO: Tummy tuck options.

From your second picture it is my impression you would do better with a full tummy tuck due to the muscle gap (diastasis). Perhaps you could undergo a combination mini/full (I call it the midi). See the attached video for a description. see video