African American Fat Removed from Abdomen and Skin Tightening

I am African American and I'm interested in getting fat removed from my upper and lower abdomen. I have had two pregnancies and was left with stretch marks and small pooch. I was told by one physicians that I am a candidate for the Smart Lipo and another told me that the Vaser would be better. I am concerned about skin tightening, so do you find Vaser with Smart Lipo, Vaser with Refirme, or Smart Lipo alone will achieve the best results?

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abdomen loose stretch marks African American female fat reduction

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5 Doctor Answers | Asked by prazem in o'fallon, USA

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Skin tightening in African American patients

Depending on the condition of your abdomen, you could be a viable candidate for liposuction, mini tuck or an abdominoplasty so a personalized consultation would be necessary to provide you with options. There has not yet been a body of sufficient research on the efficacy of the skin tightening methods you refer to in African American patients so I would regard any representations about their applicability to you with a healthy degree of skepticism at this time. Thanks for this excellent... more

Skin Excess after Pregnancy

Pregnancy caused PERMANENT stretching of the muscles of the tummy AND of the skin with the maximal stretch in both being in the area of the belly button. Although Liposuction will remove fat, it cannot and will NEVER APRRECIABLY TIGHTEN SKIN (especiall stretch marks damaged skin). Despite all the bogus glitzy ads out there pushing a variety of devices - none of them will appreciably tighten the skin (this includes Laser Lipo - SmartLipo etc) not tighten the stretched out and split tummy... more

Sound like a tummy tuck

Loose skin and multiple stretch marks will not improve with Vaser /smartlipo/ etc.. It sounds like you may need a tummy tuck. Go to a qualified plastic surgeon to be evaluated. A tummy tuck will remove many stretch marks below the umbilicus and tighten the abdominal wall.

Steven Wallach, MD

12 reviews

Manhattan Plastic Surgeon

Seek a Consultation-complete exam & discussion of all techniques for liposuction & "tummy tuck"

Your description of your "belly" is a common scenario for most women after pregnancy. However, you will need a complete consultation for liposuction versus other surgical options, such as a full abdominoplasty (a "tummy tuck"-involving both the upper and lower abdominal skin/subcutaneous tissue and complete rectus and possible oblique abdominal muscle support/repair) or a "lower" or "mini" abdominoplasty ( a surgical procedure which involves... more

Probably none of the above...

No one can answer this question without examining you and forcing you to define your expectations. But this much I can tell you: All any type of liposuction can guarantee is a removal of fat. Period. No method of liposuction has been demonstrated to produce a notable tighening of skin. In fact, by removing "the stuffing," sometimes the skin looks looser after even the best performed liposuction. And this problems is particularly an issue with the slightly loose,... more