Abdominal etching procedure - is ab muscle development still possible in treatment area? (Photo)

Question

I’ve been working out for about 10 years now - I am 30 y/o now. Tried EmSculpt and Evolve Tone. Wasn’t satisfied with results, so in 2022 I did ab etching surgery. I work with a very experienced bodybuilding coach and so I do cardio, weights, and food management very religiously. Right now I am leaning down for a show and I am very lean overall, but coach doesn’t understand why my abs aren’t popping the way they should be at this stage. He thinks it’s the surgery somehow. Any thoughts?

J. Timothy Katzen, MD, FACS · Answer

Dear User7752392, Thank you for your question regarding the abdominal etching procedure and whether muscle development is still possible in the treatment areas. Thank you for your history and your physical. You look fantastic! All that hard work, exercise, and eating right is really looking great. Congratulations! In regards to whether you’re able to develop the muscles after phaser VASER ab etching the answer is "yes". There should be no reason why you cannot exercise to develop a more shredded abdominal six-pack after VASER abdominal etching. The only thing I can imagine that may prohibit you from displaying your six-pack abs after abdominal etching is that perhaps during the VASER app etching, the outlines of the rectus muscles weren’t accurately sculpted.  During your surgery, it is possible that only the fat was sculpted. This can lead to irregularities on top of the rectus muscle, leading to the inability to display these muscles properly.  Basically, poor knowledge of the anatomy of the abdominal wall while performing the VASER could lead to scarring over the rectus muscles.  However, I believe this is highly unlikely as it would require an inexperienced surgeon. Almost all VASER ab etching surgeons know the rectus abdominis anatomy very well. Therefore, in my opinion, I would still concentrate your efforts and exercise to obtain more definition of the abdominal six-pack. Another alternative would be to consider revision VASER ab etching. The VASER would be ideal to use during your ab etching revision. The VASER helps to break up scar tissue and further define corect anatomic outline or define underdone surgical planes.  A repeat VASER etching may be needed to create your ideal abdominal six-pack. I hope my answer helps to clarify whether you can develop rectus abdominis muscle after a VASER abdominal etching procedure. Good luck.

Oliver Chang, MD · Answer

Based off your photo - it looks as if the rectus area is not as defined as the rest of your core and body - with the given history of 'Ab etching' depending on the surgeon's technique - there likely is chronic inflammation / swelling therefore hard for you to get that area defined or ripped. Recommend getting some lymphatic massages - well trained masseuses to do the job and see if that helps with enough massages for weeks to months to see a difference. Otherwise revisit with the previous surgeon or any body hi-def surgeon to see if another round of liposuction / etching will help with some of the inflammation or other techniques (like what I do in my practice - fat grafting to the rectus muscles with etching). Hope this helps.

Raja Mohan, MD · Answer

You are in excellent shape. Congrats on prepping for your competition. Since you have had procedures done it is difficult to determine what might be causing your issue. I recommend seeing a board certified plastic surgeon and have your abdomen examined.

Daniel P. Markmann, MD · Answer

With the definition you have everywhere else, I would expect better ab definition, especially if you had ab-etching once already.   It really comes down to how much fat you have in the area between the muscles of your 6-pack.  If there is fat there, I can take out, and give you better definition.   If there is not much fat there, then an alternative is to inject fat into each of the 6 muscle compartments.    In your case, the issue is, you probably don't have any fat on your body to harvest to transfer to your abs.

Abdominal etching procedure - is ab muscle development still possible in treatment area? (Photo)

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