Tummy Tuck Scar is Not As Promised by my Physician, What Should I Do?

asked 7 months ago by melartgirl
Latest answer by Remus Repta, MD
Question viewed 223 times
Tags: placement, scar tissue

I went to a board certified PS. I did my homework, im 55, i weigh 140 lbs, i'm 5'7", no scars, my first surgery. The most i've ever been overweight is roughly 40 lbs. At the consultation and postop the doctor was very clear that i would have a transverse scar and bellybutton scar. I awoke with a T shaped scar and was devastated. I cried in recovery and told him he had no right to do this. I'm one month post op and not sure the best way to handle this, he hasnt ever mentioned it.

10 answers to Tummy Tuck Scar is Not As Promised by my Physician, What Should I Do?

Sounds like your plastic surgeon did not anticipate not being able to remove the location of the belly button

Hello, The vertical part of the your inverted "T" incision is in large part the result of not being able to remove the location of the belly button. It should have been discussed as a possibility. During your surgery, your plastic surgeon, once he partially performed your tummy tuck, did not have much of a choice to prevent the vertical incision. Down the road it may be possible to revise your tummy tuck and remove the vertical incision. I would discuss... more

Remus Repta, MD
Phoenix Plastic Surgeon

Should have been discussed

Hello, There are reasons to do what your surgeon did (rare reasons,) but the possibility should have been discussed before surgery. The term for this type of tummy tuck is Inverted T or Fleur-de-lis. Best Regards, Dr D see video

John P. Di Saia, MD
Orange Plastic Surgeon

Unhappy with tummy tuck scar

It is true that after a tummy tuck most patients will only have a belly button scar, as well as a long transverse scar which is concealed by clothing. When there is only a moderate amount of upper abdominal skin excess, it is sometimes impossible to completely remove the old belly button site, necessitating the placement of a small vertical scar in between the belly button and the horizontal scar. Without photos or a pre-operative exam it is impossible to know why exactly a... more

Kelly Gallego, MD
Sioux City Plastic Surgeon

www.drgallego.com

'T' Scar with a tummy tuck

Melartgirl; I'm with you on this one. I have performed over 800 tummy tucks and have never had the situation where I put a 'T' shaped scar on a patients abdomen. It's a matter of knowing when to do a full tuck, when to do a mini-tuck, when to perform an extended mini-tuck with umbilical float and when not to operate because you know that the patient will not like where the scar is. I think that the 'T' scar is a bad look. I would definitely mention it at... more

James McMahan, MD
Columbus Plastic Surgeon

Lower midline scar

As my colleagues have suggested, there are some scenarios where a limited lower midline scar may be needed. In most cases, the surgeon is striving to place the larger transverse scar as low as possible. But because of a patient's anatomy (where preoperatively, the distance between the belly button and bikini crease is longer than usual), a limited lower midline scar is needed to minimize the tension at your transverse incision. In these cases, if... more

C. Bob Basu, MD
Houston Plastic Surgeon

www.basuplasticsurgery.com

Vertical Tummy Tuck scar

Relax, and let the wound heal. The scar often melts away, and becomes invisible to casual observation. Patients with a short distance from xiphoid to umbilicus and long distance from umbilicus to pubic symphysis offer plastic surgeons a choice during tummy tuck: Option #1: Close with a high transverse scar that will be visible above panties and swimsuits. Option #2: Float the belly button and lower it to keep the transverse scar low. Option #3: Add a... more

Steve Laverson, MD
San Diego Plastic Surgeon

feelbeautiful.com

Vertical Tummy Tuck Scar

Unfortunately, there are circumstances where a surgeon needs to employ the use of a vertical component to the tummy tuck scar to prevent more significant consequences. This isn't always possible to predict. If too much skin is removed to avoid this possibility in the wrong circumstances, the consequences can be disastrous. If at some point in the future, this continues to be a problem, it might be re-excised once your skin has relaxed from the original procedure. Communication is the key... more

Vincent P. Marin, MD
San Diego Plastic Surgeon

Tummy Tuck Scar

Thank you for the question. Sometimes, especially for patients with a relatively short torso and/or minimal redundant abdominal wall skin, a short vertical scar is necessary ( in addition to the usual transverse tummy tuck scar). This vertical scar results from closure of the previous umbilical opening and prevents excessive tension upon closer in the midline of the tummy tuck incision line. If this vertical incision is not used, patients may end up with... more

Tom J. Pousti, MD
San Diego Plastic Surgeon

www.poustiplasticsurgery.com

T shaped scar after tummy Tuck

If your skin is very tight sometimes the bellybutton scar has to be closed as a T in order to close your wound. If you take off too much skin your wound be too tight and would open postoperatively which would leave A horrible scar. I've had to do the same thing on some of my patients. Most of the time I can tell before surgery which patient may need an inverted T scar. The best thing you can do now is to wait and try not to worry. In my experience the T usually heals very... more

Wendell Perry, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

Tummy Tuck Scar Not As Promised by my Physician, What Should I Do?Answer:

Many of us do have situtations where we need to leave a small vertical scar where the old belly button used to be. You can't always tell before surgery. But it should be small and it really does heal well with time, usually better than the rest! Give it time. And had your doctor tried to pull as hard as he could to get it out, you may have ended up with dead skin at the bottom of your tummy...and really have a problem then..