I Am Considering an Avelar Tummy Tuck and Would Like to Know if I Am a Good Canidate?

Your picture shows loose skin that will never improve with diet and exercise.  It can only be removed by a tummy tuck.  Don't get caught up in marketing.  A tummy tuck is a tummy tuck.  It's not the name that matters, but the surgeon who is doing it.  Make sure your surgeon is a board certified plastic surgeon in good standing with the local medical board, and that he or she can show you many before and after pictures to give you an idea of what to expect.

Sincerely,

Martin Jugenburg, MD

I agree with most of the previous responses. Beware of marketing terms which promise you the best results and the shortest recovery. If it's too good to be true..., you know the rest. You are an excellent candidate for a full abdominoplasty with muscle plication or repair and liposuction of your whole back and upper abdomen (based on the limited lateral profile photo). See a board certified plastic surgeon for a consultation to decide what would be best for you, if additional weight loss will help prior to surgery or not. Good luck.

Be careful opting for a procedure with a catchy name or someone's name attached to it.  The Avelar procedure involves addtional inframammary incisions and may not produce as much tightening of the abdominal wall as a full abdominoplasty.  I use a full abdominoplasty, but preserve a layer of adipose tissue on the abdominal wall for lymphatic drainage.  This reduces the risk of seromas and there is only one drain left in for 3-4 days, with minimal risk of skin loss.  Complications are few and this provides a very effective treatment of the muscle wall and skin excess.  Also, limiting the width of the incision may leave loose skin on the sides, "dog ears"  (visible when you bend over, not in standard photos).  As long as the incision is kept down low, it is well-concealed.  Look at plenty of before and after photos and see what you think.  A layered repair anchors the incision down low and avoids a depression along the scar.

I see from your photo that you have some excess skin and fat. The excess skin will best be removed by tummy tuck, and some liposuction might help shape your hips and waist.  Muscle laxity from pregnancy should be corrected with a muscle repair that narrows your waist and flattens your tummy proportionally.  A new belly button is also created.

The best technique is a custom surgical plan designed by your surgeon to exactly match your body type and provide the results you desire.  I have never done 2 tummy tucks exactly the same way because no 2 patients have the same body types and desires. 

Thank you for the question and picture.

I think you are an excellent candidate for a full tummy talk procedure;  I would suggest you do your due diligence and surgeon selection and not concentrate too much on specific procedure.

Best wishes.

Great photo side viewing and don't you love my expert posting colleagues! Beware of the "gimmicks" and advertising deals. In my opinion you need a FULL TUMMY TUCK with muscle repair, period!

Hello,

The basic idea behind the "avelar" tummy tuck is that a layer of fat is left on the abominal wall.  This layer of fat should preserve additional lymphatic vessels which allows the tummy tuck to be performed without a drain.  Although you benefit from not having a drain for a week there is a layer of fat left behind that can add to the fullness of the abdomen that would otherwise be removed with traditional tummy tuck.  The center fat should be removed to allow muscle plication otherwise your abdomen would not be as flat from the side profile either.  Since you will have 1-2 weeks downtime following a tummy tuck, having a drain for a week or so does not seem to be a direct impact on resuming daily activities.  Which tummy tuck procedure would be best for you depends on your preference.  If done properly both methods should give you a good result.  My first impression is that the traditional method would benefit you more by allowing more thinning of the tissues.

All the best,

Dr. Remus Repta

Listen tyo all the wise surgeons who have already commented on your case. You need a simple abdominoplasty without any gimmicks, from a board certified plastic asurgeon and will have a great result.

Beware the "franchise" procedures, the procedures given a fancy name to use as a marketing ploy when they are ultimately just techniques that are in common use (such as tummy tuck and lipousuction), and the procedures that are typically marketed by "cosmetic surgeons" that are not trained plastic surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.

The amount of overhanging abdominal skin indicates that a tummy tuck (with a long lower abdominal scar) will be needed.  If you are planning to lose only a small amount , say 10-15 pounds, you could lose this weight before the tummy tuck OR have a tummy tuck before you complete your weight loss. If you are planning to lose a large amount of weight, for example 30-40 pounds, there is a more significant chance that your skin could loosen a bit after that weight loss, and so you should lose that weight before your tummy tuck.