What to Do for Little Dog Ears That Appear at the End of Incisions Both Sides from Recent Tummy Tuck?

Those little dog ears typically do not occur in a tummy tuck unless the scar length is too short for the amount of skin that was removed.  If they are small enough, waiting several months for scar maturation may alleviate the problem.  Redness around an early incision is normal due to the inflammation that occurs at the wound edges.  This is a necessary side effect of healing.  On the other hand, redness can also be a sign of infection although it typically is not unless the redness has spread further from the incision.  Always check with you doctor if you are not sure.  Finally, scar appearance can be helped by the use of local massage and sometimes silicone sheeting.  Many of the so called “scar creams” have little science to back up their claims so I really don’t recommend them.  When a scar is really out of hand, treatments such as steroid injection, lasers, or even excision and re-closure can be used.

This happens on occasion with abdominoplasty. There are options. A completely non invasive option would be CoolSculpting. This can freeze the fat and deliver an improved contour. More traditional options are some liposuction, or resection of skin/soft tissue. This is a much smaller procedure than the original surgery and is usually well tolerated. The cost will depend on the extent of the surgery, the method used, the cost of the surgery center, and if the original surgeon is doing it. Please speak with your Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. Together, you will figure out a plan.

I can't tell how long ago your surgery was. Dog ears can be easily removed from the ends of your tummy tuck scar. If they are small it can be done under just a local anesthetic. If your incision is red, you need to contact your surgeon to make sure that there is not an infection.

Small dog ears after tummy tuck are not unusual. They tend to resolve in time. If the dog ears persist the can be easily treated with liposuction or excision under local anesthesia. there are many option for treating the scars from tummy tuck, These include, Silicon sheething, silicone gel, Mederma, Kelocoat. Also laser can be used to reduce the redness in the scar.

Depending on how close you are to your surgery, there may still be swelling that makes these pesky "dog ears" protrude more than they ultimately will when all healing is complete. This takes months, but if there are still fairly visible dog ears at 6 weeks to 3 months post-op, surgical revision under local anesthesia may be advised. If they're small, time may be all you need to get them to flatten as they heal and swelling resolves.

Each surgeon strives to make his or her incisions the flattest and thinnest, so dog ears are not something we don't care about. Unfortunately we also strive to keep our abdominoplasty and other operation incisions as short as possible to reduce visible scarring, and dog ears of various sizes and protrusions can result from this. We are always balancing the two opposing choices--dog ear and short(er) incision or long(er) incision and less chance of dog ears!

If you are early in your recovery after tummy tuck, then relax and let these dog ears settle--they may require nothing at all but time! If you are further down the road in your recovery and these still are visible enough to bother you, then by all means see your surgeon. He or she will likely be more than happy to revise this under local anesthesia for minimal costs. This is one revision that should not be "free" but I never charge a surgeon's fee for this, and try to keep my OR costs to a bare minimum as well--I want my patient to be able to "show off" a better result for the lowest cost possible!

Talk to your surgeon! Best wishes! Dr. Tholen