What procedure would be best? A second Liposuction revision, Tummy Tuck, or reverse Tummy Tuck? (photos)

Question

I am 53 years old. 4 foot 10 inches tall and weigh 114 lbs. I had lipo done in Feb 2019 and a revision done in Feb of 2020, both done by the same surgeon. It has almost been 2 years since the revision and I am still left with irregularities. I have been hiding my belly for 2 years and want to have this fixed.

Daniel Barrett, MD · Answer

Dear Phenomenal738314,
I would have to examine you but it appears that this is a contour irregularity after liposuction. This happens often when areas the undergo liposuction are not feathered appropriately.
The good news is that it can be fixed and I have done so with good results before. While there is always a chance for contour irregularities with liposuction, someone who takes their time and uses the appropriate sized cannulas should give you a superb result.I have all my patients wear compression garments and I use multiple sized cannulas to feather out the result.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

Arian Mowlavi, MD, FACS (license on probation) · Answer

What you need is a high definition liposuction revision using a high definition tummy tuck apporach that we call the modified abdominal skin resection. This will dramatically improve your contour irregularities. Please consider a virtual consultation from a high definition liposuction expert to get more details.

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

Procedures should be based on what the underlying ideology or diagnosis is. A tummy tuck primarily treats skin laxity and muscle separation from previous pregnancies called diastasis recti.

If you have either of those two conditions then a tummy tuck may be correct. A tummy tuck does not treat an uneven fat distribution from previous poorly done Liposuction.

If your problem is related to fat distribution then the treatment has to focus on that diagnosis.

Liposuction is a permanent and more or less irreversible procedure. Delivering consistent high-quality Liposuction results is far more difficult than most people believe. This is why I encourage everybody to vet their surgeons carefully before committing to have a Liposuction. All too often results are left leaving people disfigured and poor results from badly done especially aggressive Liposuction are very difficult and sometimes impossible to correct.

Treatment options are generally revision Liposuction, fat transfer or a combination of both.

Both of these have inherent limitations.

When the area of disfigurement is limited to a certain area like lower abdomen only then sometimes exercising the entire disfigured area by having a full tummy tuck can be helpful.

When the area of disfigurement includes the upper abdomen then direct skin excision flies out the window to some degree.

I see absolutely no indication for doing a reverse tummy tuck other than leaving you more disfigured.

You may be a candidates for a full tummy tuck but it is not a treatment that corrects fat distribution.

In the end it is most likely not possible to restore your abdomen to pre-procedure or something that looks completely normal.

I would encourage you to share your story by writing honest professional reviews about your experience and telling others on various forms like real self to warn others to be careful when vetting plastic surgeons or untrained providers for liposuction procedures.

I’m sure you would’ve appreciated hearing other patients previous experiences and this could’ve helped steer you towards a more talented provider.

Revision Liposuction is far more difficult than primary procedures. While it is good-natured of doctors to want to take care of the round results providers who cannot deliver quality results with a primary procedures almost universally fail at revisions and typically only make things worse.

Revision and Liposuction is many times more difficult than primary Liposuction procedures.

For that reason your best option is to find the most experienced Liposuction and fat transfer provider in your community and ask him or her for their recommendations.

Do not try to reinvent the wheel and invent your own operations that are not proven. You are not a plastic surgeon, you do not have years of experience or the appropriate training to make medical decisions and should avoid the temptation.

Patients who have been disfigured by previous procedures often have a great deal of apprehension and anxiety when it comes to having future procedures. The amount of time devoted to consultations for patients like yourself can be endless and often do not generate any financial reward for the provider since most patients in the end really aren’t good candidates for any more surgery.

Still, the correct approach is to find the most experienced and talented provider and let that person guide your decision making.

Avoid providers who feel that this can easily be treated or that some high energy device such as VASER will magically correct previously inappropriately removed fat.

Rely exclusively on in person consultations.

Look for plastic surgeons who have a collection of before and after pictures preferably with lots of long-term revision work that reads like a telephone book.  I would also aim to select providers who have the least number of justified negative reviews on various physician review websites.

I can only imagine how upsetting this whole experience must be for you. You are certainly not the first patient I’ve encountered who’ve had poorly done Liposuction and the truth is all plastic surgeons have their skeletons in the closet and cases they weren’t proud of.

As is almost always the case. Find the right provider and everything falls into place. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of choosing the most experienced and talented providers.

Easier said than done but it is possible.

Best,

Mats Hagstrom MD

What procedure would be best? A second Liposuction revision, Tummy Tuck, or reverse Tummy Tuck? (photos)

Answers (3)

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Everything you need to know about Liposuction Revision

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What procedure would be best? A second Liposuction revision, Tummy Tuck, or reverse Tummy Tuck? (photos)

Answers (3)

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Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Liposuction Revision

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.