Fear of Death During Tummy Tuck

As a matter of fact, you are more likely to die in a car crash on the way to the surgery center than you are during your surgery.

if you cannot get the fear out of your head, cancel the surgery.  the risk is not zero and even if everything is done perfectly, the risk of dvt, pe, does exist.  either way quit the smoking for good; not just for the surgery.  you have two small children and the smoking is more likely to kill you than the abdominoplasty

It is totally normal for patients to experience anxiety before surgery.  For some, it is just a slight nervousness while for others it is a full blown panic attack.  There is always that fear that something will go wrong during surgery, and as a worst case scenario, the patient will die.  Anything is possible, but when done under normal conditions by board certified plastic surgeons in controlled, safe enviornments, the death rates for any sort of aesthetic surgery should be extremely small.  When you hear of death as a result from aesthetic surgery, it almost always turns out to be someone that claims to be a plastic surgeon, but is really not - they are generally another type of physician making the claim that they are a "cosmetic" surgeon.  As long as you ahve done your homework on your surgeon and feel comfortable with the plan, then you should be fine.  I hope this helps.

Thank you for the question. The best published data I can find regarding mortality rates associated with tummy tuck surgery range from 0.02% to 0.16%.   In other words, mortality rates are extremely low. The most common cause of that is related to pulmonary embolism (blood clots that moved to the patient's lungs).

Your best bet: choose your plastic surgeon very carefully; everything else including good judgment/advice/planning, anesthesia provider and safe surgery facility will follow. 

This careful selection should give you some peace of mind that you will be safe around the time of surgery. 

Best wishes.

Don't do it, period. Wait until this fear is gone then consider having it done. I've canceled many surgeries for that very same reason. Call me superstitious, and illogical, but I trust women's instincts. Though we'll never know whether this policy has prevented any of my patients from dying; I would rather not find out! The surgery itself is safe: Minute per minute it may be safer than being on any highway, but still it's an elective procedure postpone it. 

Anxiety vs fear are very different issues. Fear of death that is  truly making your decision on whether to have surgery or not is an unrealistic thought that needs to be discussed in detail with your surgeon. If after this discussion you still have this issue I would recommend not doing the surgery. Just my opinion. 

It is normal to be nervous prior to any surgical procedure, but very unlikely.  You seem to be doing all the right things. If you are so nervous and apprehensive perhaps you should hold off or wait until you feel better about it.  Discuss it further with your surgeon.

based on your specs your risk appears to be acceptable. your level of anxiety is not, you need to be emotionally ready. no one can guarantee anything. you've done your homework and made important concessions for safety. now its time to proceed with a clear head. if you cannot, then cancel and revisit in the future. when in doubt, sit it out. If you were my pt I would rather have you cancel, than proceed to surgery unfit. 

A tummy tuck procedure is like any major surgical procedure with inherent risks both from anesthesia and from the surgery.  It is mostly done under general anesthesia and there are small risks from any general anesthesia procedure.  There are risks from post operative pulmonary embolus.  Early ambulation will help prevent that.  However, in an otherwise healthy patient, the chances of dying from a tummy tuck procedure is highly unlikely, probably in the order of 1 in 100,000.  The chances of dying from a tummy tuck operation are probably less than from driving one's car on the interstate freeway.

Anxiety about surgery and recovery are quite normal, however if they dominate your thoughts and alter your sleep and activity, you should change your plans, or get help. Fears out of proportion with the reality of a situation such as fear of flying need special attention.
Best of luck,
peterejohnsonmd