Solutions for Loose Skin on Abdomen?

Thank you for your question. You sound as though you are in excellent condition, spin and only have a small amount of loose skin on your tummy.With your history of lymphedema I would be reluctant to perform a full tummy tuck on you for fear of interfering with lymphatic drainage from your lower extremities.And a person like you nonsurgical skin tightening is certainly a consideration. While nonsurgical skin tightening cannot achieve the same tightening as a tummy tuck, in patients like you you can achieve as much as 20% tightening.The most important and crucial thing is defined an operator\physician who is experienced and knows how to use the skin tightening technology. Far too often the problem is not the skin tightening machine but the lack of expertise of the operator that results in failure.Choose and experienced position, preferably one who is a member of the ASLMS,very experienced in laser and nonsurgical procedures,, who has an excellent reputation in your community, and can show you photographs of results that he or she has achieved. Well-known non-surgical devices are Thermage, Lux IR Deep, Titan and Ulthera.

Unfortunately, at this time there are no non-surgical options to tighten loose abdominal skin.  There are some lasers that you can try that will temporarily help slight looseness but if you have significant loose skin, an abdominoplasty is what you need.  If you don't need abdominal muscle repair, you may be able to have a skin only tummy tuck or if you are a candidate, a mini-tummy tuck.  It's difficult to say what would be the best option for you without photos or a physical exam, so make sure you consult with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon to see what the best options are for you.  Make sure that you disclose your lymphedema to your surgeon to make sure you have the appropriate tests prior to surgery as it's always best to be safe than have complications later that could've been avoided.

There are no good non-invasive was to tighten loose abdominal skin - skin laxity is a mechanical problem, and the solution is surgical - you need a tummy tuck. I've had experience with laser liposuction, ultra-sound based technologies and other non-invasive devices - they don't work for moderate and severe skin laxity.