Gastric Bypass Q&A

94%

WORTH IT RATING

87 Reviews

Ask a Question

View Before and Afters

Average Gastric Bypass Cost: $12,250

Learn about Gastric Bypass

258 people and 44 doctors are talking about Gastric Bypass

Get Free Email Updates

How to Get Rid of Sagging Skin After Gastric Bypass and Weight Loss?

asked 3 years ago by Panama Girl in Connecticut
Latest answer by Bernard Shuster, MD
Question viewed 8,918 times
Tags: sagging, after weight loss

I had gastric bypass and my skin sags now. Where it folds (abdomen, thighs, arms), I get infections and painful rashses, and I'm looking for ways to stop this.

What type of treatment or surgery is available to get rid of all the extra skin? Could the sagging skin be fixed all at once or would it require me to have lots of things done over a long time?

19 answers to How to Get Rid of Sagging Skin After Gastric Bypass and Weight Loss?

Considering bariatric surgery? Gastric bypass or banding?

I have been encouraging overweight patients considering gastric bypass or banding to have a discussion with a plastic surgeon before your bariatric surgery. We can provide realistic expectations about how the weight loss will affect your body and to give you a future projection about the problems you may encounter with the extra skin that will inevitably develop. Although many insurance carriers will cover the body sculpting surgery today, many are expected to turn away... more

Randy Wong, MD
Honolulu Plastic Surgeon

Surgery after weight loss

Your problem is not uncommon after weight loss. There are many surgeries that can help you in many different areas and depending on what surgery you are doing will depend on what you can combine. In my practice I do a lower body lift (address laxity of the abdomen and thighs) with no other procedure because it is a lot of surgery at one time. When you are ready to proceed with surgery be sure that you consult with an experienced board certified plastic surgeon that can show you a... more

Bernard Shuster, MD
Hollywood Plastic Surgeon

Treatment of Excess Skin After Weight Loss

There are many options to treat your excess skin following weight loss. First you want to make sure your weight loss has stabilized. One of the mainstays for body contouring after weight loss is the body lift procedure. Most plastic surgeons refer to a body lift as a circumferential body lift = belt lipectomy. This procedure is essentially 3 procedures in one: extended tummy tuck + waist/lateral thigh lift + buttock lift (with the option of buttock augmentation)... more

C. Bob Basu, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Body lift.....

Hello, You are likely looking at body lift surgery. This can be staged or done at one time if you are tolerant of increased risk. I tend to stage them in my practice to keep the complications to a minimum. Best Regards, John Di Saia MD

John P. Di Saia, MD
Orange Plastic Surgeon

Removing Excess Skin After Weight Loss: Trading the sag for a scar

Patients who lose significant amounts of weight are left with excess skin which can be a problem with wearing clothes and with skin hygiene. Removing the skin has become an increasingly more common operation with many refinements in technique and scar position. Excess skin can be removed in almost any place in the body, however you trade the skin for a scar in most circumstances. The abdomen, thighs and arms can all be treated, however combination cases should be planned with safety as... more

Andrew P. Trussler, MD
Dallas Plastic Surgeon

Lower Body Lift

Normally we ask for pictuar after the patientes have lost the weight. After we recived the pictures we call the patients and plan the surgery or number of surgeris to removed the unwanted skin, pependind on the case we peform one or more operations. Normally the surgery that is perform fiest in a Lower Body lift fallow bya Breast lift and arm lift o braquioplasty. Than You

Alejandro J. Quiroz, M.D.
Mexico Plastic Surgeon

Skin laxity correcting

Good to hear you have lost your unwanted weight! The issue many weight loss patients have to deal with is that the lost fat results in skin laxity issues, which in turn may lead to rashes developing from excess skin flapping over. The treatment for most patients is a total body lift and it is performed between 1-3 stages. If you just are looking for your abdomen, thighs, and arms you may just need to do a lower body lift and a brachioplasty, which could be performed in one stage, but... more

Siamak Agha, MD, PhD
Orange County Plastic Surgeon

Body contouring procedures after weight loss surgery

Patients will typically have significant amounts of loose skin in many areas after weight loss surgery. These areas usually include the abdomen, thighs, arms, breasts, back, buttocks and even the face. The approach to these areas can be tailored to the patient's needs depending on their anatomy and desires. However, most experts agree that the best location to begin is with the central abdomen, which usually involves a tummy tuck procedure that extends circumferentially around the... more

William Bruno, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

Multiple surgeries may be needed for excess skin

Congratulations on losing weight! That is wonderful that you've taken control of your life and weight. After massive weight loss, one usually has to deal with all the excess skin. I limit my elective outpatient surgeries to 6 hours is length. It would be impossible and unsafe to resect all your excess skin in that amount of time and would have to be staged. The operations needed if the skin is loose all over is a body lift (abdominoplasty, outer thigh lift and buttock lift), inner... more

Irvin M. Wiesman, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Body contouring is an option

After massive wieght loss patients typically undergo procedures to remove the skin that remains. Arms can be tightened with the brachioplasty procedure and a body lift or belt lipectomy is performed to remove the extra skin on the trunk and to tighten the skin on the upper thighs and back. Usually we can accomplish the bodylift and brachioplasty in one procedure. The thighs are addressed in a second procedure performed 3-6 months later.

Marisa Lawrence, MD
Atlanta Plastic Surgeon

Body contouring after massive weight loss

Dear Panama Girl, Excess skin after massive weight loss is very common these days. Body contouring procedures to address excess skin are well established, and there are many reasonable combinations. Your question if it could be fixed "all at once" is really a question of risk - the more surface area that is addressed during one operative session, the more the overall risk. Surgical time is longer, DVT risk is higher, and bleeding risk is greater as well. Because of these issues... more

Michael A. Bogdan, MD
Dallas Plastic Surgeon

Safety first with post-bariatric body contouring

These types of complaints are very common following massive weight loss. While it is possible to perform multiple operations during one setting, it must be done safely. You need to choose a surgeon who has good, safe judgement in order to minimize your surgical risk. Factors that need to be considered are: your overall health, ability to heal, length of time under anesthesia, and your ability to recover from the operations.

Kevin Brenner, MD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Getting rid of sagging skin after gastric bypass and weight loss

Post Weight Loss Body Contouring has become an increasingly frequently done set of operations. Women such as you sacrificed a lot to lose all this weight and are frequently frustrated to realize that once the weight was lost you are still entrapped in a body of loose hanging skin which no longer represents you. However, to reclaim the NEW YOU requires multiple procedures which are BEST done in several stages. Attempting to do them in as few stages as possible is VERY expensive and medically... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Consult a plastic surgeon who has experience with patients who have had bariatric surgery

There are many thing s to consider when you go in to consult with a plastic surgeon about your loose skin. First make sure your plastic surgeon is comfortable taking care of patients after bariatric surgery as they can be more complicated and problems after surgery such as seromas are more frequent. Second, make sure you are in good condition to undergo any elective surgery. Make sure you are taking your vitamins as recommended by your bariatric surgeon. Have your labs checked to make sure... more

Susan E. Downey, MD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

Surgery can help you.

See a qualified plastic surgeon and let him evaluate you. There are multiple procedures that can be done. You will not be totally fixed with one operation. As it took months to years to lose the weight, it will take time to re-shape your body and remove the excess skin. But first - your weight must be stable for months.

William B. Rosenblatt, MD
New York Plastic Surgeon

A series of surgeries is safer in my hands than trying to fix everything in one operation

While i understand the desire to get all your to get all your loose skin problems fixed at one time I feel it is safer to do a series of procedures. I try to limit the anesthesia time to under 6 hours. After 6 hours complications seem to increase. A lot can be accomplished in 6 hours. I typically will address the breast with lift, augmentation, reduction or any combination of these along with addressing the abdomen with or with out liposuction. Second stage is to lift the lateral thighs and... more

Carl W. "Rick" Lentz III, MD
Daytona Beach Plastic Surgeon

Body, breast, arms, and thigh lift

The common practice around the country is to divide the body contouring procedures in two or more surgeries. The usual combination is body lift, breast, arms, and thighs. Combining two or more of these procedures is patient dependent . e.g the breast could be done as a part of an upper body lift if needed.There are centers who advocate one stage lifting. It is important to be very careful when attempting this. The post gastric bypass patient might be nutritionaly deficient and a prolonged... more

Hisham Seify, MD, PhD
Los Angeles Plastic Surgeon

One at a time or grouped surgeries

It is clearly the most conservative and perhaps the safest plan is to group these surgeries into a few different settings. Dr. Hurwitz is the national expert in total body lifting in which the entire process is done by multiple surgical teams in one setting.

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

Loose sagging skin after gastric bypass: one or multiple surgeries?

The vast majority of surgeons would typically approach this over multiple procedures. There are only a few centers in the United States where a "total body lift" is performed. You must be in optimal shape prior to undergoing this procedure. Dr. Dennis Hurwitz popularized this sequence of operations at one sitting. I heard he splits his time between Beverly Hills and Pittsburgh. These types of complex procedures require many surgeons to operate at the same time. The safety of one... more

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Ask a question