Numbness after Tummy Tuck - how it is typically managed if it develops?

Hello Thrifty96679. Thank you for your question regarding nerve pain and numbness after a tummy tuck.

Numbness in the abdominal area after a tummy tuck is a common occurrence due to the surgical disruption of the nerves during the procedure. Typically, this numbness is temporary and improves over time as the nerves regenerate. However, in some cases, patients may experience prolonged numbness or altered sensation, which can last for several months to a year. From my experience, most patients do not develop chronic nerve pain or hypersensitivity that significantly impacts their quality of life. The incidence of long-term nerve pain is relatively low, and when it does occur, it is usually mild and manageable.

If numbness or nerve pain develops and persists, management strategies may include observation and patience, as the sensation gradually returns on its own as the nerves heal. It is important to give your body time to recover. If nerve pain occurs, medications such as gabapentin or pregabalin, which are commonly used to treat nerve pain, can be prescribed. Gentle massage and physical therapy techniques can help stimulate nerve recovery and improve sensation. Certain topical creams, such as those containing lidocaine, can provide temporary relief from nerve discomfort. Regular follow-up with your plastic surgeon is crucial as they can assess your progress and make recommendations if the numbness or pain persists.

While the risk of chronic nerve issues exists, it is relatively uncommon, and most patients experience a full or near-full return of sensation over time. It’s important to discuss these concerns with your plastic surgeon during your consultation so they can provide personalized advice based on your medical history and the specifics of your surgery. Good luck. I hope this helps to answer your question regarding numbness and nerve pain after a tummy tuck.

Sincerely,
Dr. Katzen

Thrifty 96679 come

Thank you for your question. Numbness after a tummy tuck is a normal occurrence due to the nature of the operation. The sensation to your tummy usually takes a while to come back. It may take up to a year. It's always possible that it could be small areas that never regain complete sensation. Chronic nerve pain is rare. I would say in my practice it is less than a half a percent of patients and specifically I can only remember one patient in my practice in the last 15 years that had irretractable pain that required management by pain management specialist.

Proceed on with your tummy tuck. Follow up and care and you should be hopefully in good shape.

Best wishes,

ESJ,

#TruthAndTransformation.

Hello @Thrifty96679, thank you for your question. While it's normal to experience some tightness and numbness after a tummy tuck, the severity and duration of these symptoms can vary from patient to patient. It's important to keep in mind that everyone's healing process is unique, and some patients may take longer to fully recover from their procedure than others. Additionally, certain factors such as the extent of the surgery, surgical technique and the patient's preoperative characteristics can impact the healing process. Best wishes! Alan Gonzalez MD, FACS. American Society of Plastic Surgery Member (ASPS), International Federation for Adipose Therapeutics and Science” Member (IFATS), American Society of Plastic Surgery Member (ASPS), Colombian Society of Plastic Surgery member (SCCP)

Chronic nerve pain or long term numbness are relatively rare after a procedure like a tummy tuck. During any surgery, including a tummy tuck, it is common to have some sensation changes or numbness as some of the nerve endings are disrupted or injured during the surgery. However, as your body heals, these nerves typically recover and most patients regain normal sensation within 3-9 months. In some cases, there can be some areas where there is long term decrease in sensation, but chronic pain/hypersensitivity are quite rare.
I recommend you consult with a board certified plastic surgeon to discuss your surgical options and the associated risks. At your consultation, your surgeon will be able to guide you through what the recovery process looks like and will discuss your concerns with you at length.

Thanks for your question! Numbness typically occurs early on and subsides as swelling goes down and healing progresses. Long-term numbness is possible but less likely. There really is no good cure once it happens so the best idea is to make every attempt to ensure it doesn't happen at all. Good luck!

Long-term nerve pain after a tummy tuck really is not that common. In very few cases, when this problem arises, there are medicines to decrease the hypersensitivity until it improves on its own. Sometimes specific nerves are involved and perhaps referral to a pain clinic may help or completely treat the problem.

Chronic nerve pain following a tummy tuck is rare. If a patient does develop chronic nerve pain, a nerve block can be performed to address this. Alternatively, nerve pain may be associated with a neuroma, which is scar tissue that has formed around a nerve. The neuroma may be excised if it can be located.

Numbness is expected after a tummy tuck since the lower sensory nerves are cut. The area of numbness is below the belly button to the scar and mostly in the center of the abdomen. Early on, you may have more numbness over the abdomen, but this usually clears in 3-6 months. Chronic nerve pain is uncommon but may still occur with any cut nerve. This can be treated with a variety of things including physical therapy, massage, injections, and if needed, a consult with a pain specialist.

Changes in sensation are common after a tummy tuck as the nerve endings are disrupted during surgery. However as swelling resolves and healing continues, most patients regain normal sensation. There are occasions where patients may experience small areas of permanent decreased sensation. Chronic nerve pain and hypersensitivity like you described would be rare for tummy tuck patients.

The great majority of patients who have tummy tuck surgery do not have chronic pain.
I would say overall it’s pretty uncommon.
It seems far more likely in individuals who have access visceral fat in which case muscle tightening causes increased inter, abdominal pressure and tightness of the abdominal wall that can be associated with increased long-term pain.
It’s very important to understand your own candidacy for the procedure.
There are four tissue variables that determine what the abdomen looks like.
These are.
1) abdominal skin laxity typically due to previous pregnancies or weight loss.
2) excess subcutaneous fat.
3) muscle separation from previous pregnancy.
4) excess visceral or intra-abdominal fat.
Almost all patients will develop permanent numbness of their lower medial abdominal skin above the incision.
Most patients get a custom to this and it becomes the new normal with enough time.
Some people are bothered by this long-term, but most are not.
It seems to be helpful if patients are aware of this before having the procedure.
The outcome of the procedure are basically determined by the patient’s candidacy and the selection of provider.
Provider selection is Paramount.
Different plastic surgeons, have different skill and experience levels with this procedure.
Simply put some people do this procedure better than others.
in the hands of the right provider, long-term problems are less likely than in the hands of someone who doesn’t have ideal, skill and experience.
To find the best provider I suggest patient schedule multiple in person consultations with plastic surgeons in their community.
Bring pictures of your own body, the same way plastic surgeons take before and after pictures and use those as reference during each consultation.
during each consultation as each provider to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of before, and after pictures of previous patients, who had similar body characteristics to your own.
During each consultation, the surgeon should differentiate between each of the four tissue variables mentioned above.
recognize that only abdominal skin laxity and muscle separation are treated with this procedure.
Individuals who have issues with excess subcutaneous, fat or especially excess visceral fat are not going to be ideal candidates.
Judge tummy tuck results based on who gets the most natural looking bellybutton with a very low set scar that follows an atomic contours naturally.
for reference of what equal tummy tuck incision should look like consider looking at the website of Eleonore Zetrenne, M.D. her incision style as taught by the master Mark Kobayashi, MD is in my opinion the ideal design for tummy tuck incisions.
An experienced plastic surgeon should have no difficulty showing you the before and after pictures of at least 50 previous patients.
Being shown a handful of pre-selected images, representing only the best results of a providers career is insufficient to get a clear understanding of what average results look like in the hands of each provider what your results are likely to look like or how many of these procedures they’ve actually done.
There’s no correct number of consultations needed to find the right provider.
The more consultations you scheduled the more likely you are to find the better provider for your needs.
It’s very important patients have a clear understanding of what quality results look like, as well as develop a clear understanding of their own candidacy for the procedure in the first place.
Considering how much variation there is in skill and experience with this procedure, I recommend patients consider scheduling five or six consultations before selecting a provider.
The outcome of this procedure is very much permanent and irreversible.
If not done correctly, the first time around it is unlikely patients are going to be able to converted to a quality outcome with revision surgery.
Someone who is an excellent candidate, has the potential for having an excellent outcome.
They can also have a poor outcome if the procedure isn’t done well.
Somebody who is not a good candidate for a tummy tuck does not have the potential of getting a quality outcome regardless of who they choose as their provider.
Best,
Mats Hagstrom, MD.