Could my nerve that controls my bowels be damaged from tummy tuck?

Hello Tasteful637424. Thank you for your question regarding the severe pain and bowel immotility you’ve been experiencing since your tummy tuck.

While it’s uncommon, it is possible for a tummy tuck to affect nerves in a way that could influence bowel function. During a tummy tuck, the abdominal muscles are tightened, and excess skin and fat are removed. This procedure can involve manipulation of the nerves that supply the abdominal wall. Although the nerves directly responsible for bowel function are located deeper and are usually not affected by a tummy tuck, indirect effects could potentially contribute to your symptoms.

For example, if the procedure caused significant scar tissue or adhesions within the abdominal cavity, this could potentially affect the movement of your intestines, leading to symptoms like pain and bowel immotility. Scar tissue can sometimes impinge on nerves, leading to pain that feels like the area is being tightly bound, as you described.

Another possibility is that the nerve supplying the abdominal wall was irritated or damaged during surgery. This could cause pain, but it’s less likely to directly affect bowel motility since the nerves responsible for controlling bowel movements are usually deeper and separate from those affected by a tummy tuck.

However, given the severity of your symptoms and the fact that imaging studies have not revealed any obvious organ problems, it is crucial to explore all potential causes. I strongly recommend consulting with a gastroenterologist or a neurologist who can assess whether nerve damage might be playing a role in your symptoms. They might suggest nerve conduction studies or additional imaging to get a clearer picture of what might be going on.

It’s important to get a thorough evaluation so that you can find relief from these troubling symptoms. I hope this helps provide some direction for your next steps.

Sincerely,

J. Timothy Katzen, MD, FASMBS, FICS

If you had a simple tummy tuck, with no repair of the diastasis, I can’t think of any reason that you should have problems with your bowels after that operation. However, if your doctor performed a small hernia repair and opened into your peritoneal cavity, some scarring may occur internally, which could affect the bowels. I would continue to follow up with your gastroenterologist. Best wishes.

It is very unlikely that your tuck has anything to do with your bowel movements. The tuck was done on top of your muscles, and your intestines are all deep to your muscles. Go see a gastroenterologist and be checked for food allergies. You have something else going on internally.

I'm sorry to hear of the issues you are experiencing. They are not likely related to your tummy tuck as the procedure does not open your abdominal cavity. A GI specialist would be recommended for follow up.

Get well soon, please take him to a general surgeon as soon as possible. I do not think that these complaints are related to tummy tuck surgery. I would like to give you some information about tummy tuck surgery. Once you decide for this procedure, your pre-operative preparations are completed.The surgery may take 2-5 hours depending on the procedure. I think you have an incision line that can be hidden under underwear and is 8-10 cm below the navel and above the hairy area. This area is the area that does not reach your intestinal lining before and after the surgery. While this procedure is performed, a second incision is made around your navel, according to the surgeon's preference. After the surgery is completed, the incision line is closed with either metal staples, individual stitches on the skin, or hidden stitches under the skin, and covered with dressings. One or two tubes called drains may be placed to remove excess fluid collected in the area. During the surgery, a urinary catheter is usually used on the first day. After you stand up, the urinary catheter is removed and the process is completed after you pass urine and stool. Your current complaints cannot be a complication related to this operation.

To make an assessment on the outcome of any plastic surgery procedure we generally need to see a complete set of proper before and after pictures.
Even if your problems are not related to the Aesthetic outcome seeing before and after pictures gives us a lot of information about why people may be having various issues after this procedure.
What you describe my best guess is you had and probably still have access visceral fat.
Individuals who have access visceral fat should be told during in person consultations that they need to lose weight until the excess fat that is inside their abdomen has been reduced sufficiently to tighten the muscle layer during a tummy tuck.
If patients who have excess visceral fat do not lose weight prior to having a tummy tuck, then tightening the muscle wall will create increased intra abdominal pressure which will lead to a bulging abdomen, and a feeling of always being tight.
It may feel like it’s difficult to take a deep breath.
These patients may feel discomfort because of the constant pressure against the back of their abdominal wall.
The presence of excess visceral fat can usually be seen on both before and after pictures.
For individuals who have this problem, the solution is generally always the same.
It requires weight loss and there is no surgical treatment for it.
Individuals who have access visceral fat should not have a tummy tuck unless they can have successful weight loss first.
They should also be told that future weight gain may create these problems.
You may or you may not have excess visceral fat.
We can tell from the information included.
From what you describe my best guess is that is why you’re having symptomatology.
Best,
Mats Hagstrom MD