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How Can a Physician Tell the Difference Between Fat and Loose Skin for a Tummy Tuck?

asked 1 year ago by texas8386 in texas
Latest answer by S. Sean Younai, MD
Question viewed 1,240 times
Tags: female, excess skin, weight loss, post-pregnancy

I am going for my consult on Friday and was wanting to schedule my surgery in 2-3 months in order for me to lose the last 10lbs of baby weight. Is it possible to lose the belly fat or is it just skin? How can you tell the difference?

12 answers to How Can a Physician Tell the Difference Between Fat and Loose Skin for a Tummy Tuck?

Difference of excess fat and loose tummy skin

One of the first things that I check when evaluating a patient for a tummy tuck is to asses how much abdominal subcutaneous fat they have. I also, determine how much loose and hanging abdominal skin they have. when the predominant issue with the abdomen is excess skin folds then the correct procedure is a tummy tuck. on the other hand if there is mostly excess fat over the abdomen, then liposuction would be preferable.

S. Sean Younai, MD
Beverly Hills Plastic Surgeon

www.beautifulself.com

Tummy Tuck or Liposuction?

An experienced plastic surgeon can easily determine if you have excess skin, excess fat, or both during your consultation. If you have good quality skin and only excess fat, it can be treated with liposuction alone. If you have excess skin with or without excess fat, then an abdominoplasty or tummy tuck is necessary. The only way to remove stretch marks is with an abdominoplasty.

Frank Agullo, MD
El Paso Plastic Surgeon

www.elpasoplasticsurgery.com

See a board certified plastic surgeon.

A board certified plastic surgeon will be able to tell of you have excess skin or belly fat during a consultation. see video

Otto Joseph Placik, MD
Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Belly Fat can go away following pregnancy

Belly Fat can go away. If you have had more than one Pregnancy then you may have had too much Stretching of your abdominal skin. If that is true for you then A tummy tuck be the right answer for you. If the sskn is not too loose and has good elasticity then liposuction is the right way to go. You should for your examination by your plastic surgeon to help you decide.

Fred Aguilar III, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Belly Fat versus Loose Skin

Thank you for submitting your photograph. It appears that you have loose skin with stretch marks and abdominal wall laxity. Neither of these will significantly improve with liposuction. Therefore, I would recommend a tummy tuck once you reach your goal weight. This will accomplish three things: removal of your stretch marks, removal of loose skin, and correction of abdominal wall laxity. You seem to be a wonderful candidate and can expect... more

Paul S. Gill, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Fat vs Loose Skin For Tummy Tuck

It appears that you are a good candidate for a tummy tuck. Any board-certified plastic surgeon should be able to tell you the proportion of your problem due to fat and to excess skin. Certainly the ideal candidate for a tummy tuck has mainly excess skin rather than excess fat.

John Whitt, MD
Louisville Plastic Surgeon

IDEAL Tummy Tuck Candidate

Plastic surgeons are super-specialists. The vast majority have trained in Surgery before training in Plastic Surgery. They have examined many thousands of tummies and can easily differentiate between loose skin and extra fat. In your case, it appears you have had at least one pregnancy which stretched your tummy muscles and skin leaving you with a pooch. Losing 10 pounds will make no difference in your ultimate outcome. A Full Tummy Tuck involving muscle tightening would narrow your... more

Peter A. Aldea, MD
Memphis Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck evaluation

Based on examination, plastic surgeons can tell you whether you have excess skin and/or excess fat. Often times after pregnancy and a large weight fluctuation, one is left with excess skin that needs to be removed. Tummy tuck is a body contouring procedure where excess skin and fat from lower abdomen are removed and muscle is brought back together. If you have a loose skin, you will most likely need a tummy tuck.

Sugene Kim, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

Tummy tuck vs. liposuction

An exam would help determine if there is loose skin or just fatty tissue that can be treated. If you have loose skin you probably would need a tummy tuck.

Steven Wallach, MD
Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Evaluation of your abdomen

An experienced board certified plastic surgeon will examine your abdominal wall. Based on his/her exam findings, your plastic surgeon will make recommendations for treatment. If you are trying to correct/reverse the changes to your tummy from pregnancy, then a tummy tuck may be needed to tighten up your muscles that have stretched out from pregnancy. But again, recommendations can only be made after a formal evaluation. Please visit with a surgeon in your... more

C. Bob Basu, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

www.basuplasticsurgery.com

Skin vs fat on the abdomen

An experienced plastic surgeon can easily tell what surgery you need depending on what the problem is ie. skin vs fat vs muscle laxity or a combination. What you don't want to do is go to a non-plastic surgeon pushing a treatment like laser liposuction who will tell you that is all you need without even considering your skin/fat/muscle issues!!!

Richard P. Rand, MD, FACS
Seattle Plastic Surgeon

It is absolutely critical to distinguish internal and extrenal fat to predict results

An experienced plastic surgeon can easily tell you whether you are ready and whether you are a good candidate for a tummy tuck. Unfortunately, too often I see cosmetic surgeons who may only do liposuction recommending the wrong procedure and this can result in sub-optimal results.