Liposuction and Tummy Tuck at Once?

I had two pregnancies and have excess skin and stretch marks. My doctor recommends to have a Liposuction first and 6 months later, have the Tummy Tuck. He says that by doing the Liposuction first, the skin will have enough time to shrink back, so when I'm ready to get the Tummy tuck the cut will not be as wide as if I where to do the Liposuction and Tummy Tuck at the same time. Is this statement valid? Is it a good idea or would you recommend to get the two procedures done at the same time?

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3 Doctor Answers | Asked by nonanona in riverside

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Pros and Cons of Liposuction and Tummy Tuck at once

Without having the beneift of pictures, by staging your procedures you are likely to get the maximal result with maximal safety. The downside is that you will have to go through two separate procedures with the associated costs and downtime. I don't believe that minimizing scar length should be the motivating factor here. I my experience, very few patients are good candidates for a "mini" tummy tuck and often excess skin or "dog ears" are created when the surgeon tries... more

It;s a matter of opinion

The vast majority of patients would clearly prefer to have one surgery. Doing the surgeries separately, in the manner described, makes sense and is likely based on the surgeons expreience. There are not hard and fast rules here. It is open to interpretation.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD

33 reviews

Chicago Plastic Surgeon

Lipo + Tummy Tuck: It all depends on where you need Lipo

I routinely combine liposuction and tummy tuck, but the key question is where you are needing the lipo. It is generally NOT advisable to have lipo done on the front of the tummy at the same time as tummy tuck, because of the risk of skin loss and poor healing. That being said, if you have a lot of fat on your upper abs, why not consider getting the fat off yourself via diet and excercise and then doing the tummy tuck when you don't need as much lipo? This is cheaper, safer AND patients who... more