Lipo/JPlasma or Mini Tummy Tuck or Full TT - What is the best option for me? (Photos)

The best technique would be abdominoplasty with mesh reinforcement, if you are not planning future pregnancies. The mesh creates a more hourglass figure by compressing the abdominal wall resulting in early satiety and helps maintain the reduced weight. From your side views, you have a lot of extra skin that cannot be removed with a mini tummy tuck.

Best Wishes,

Gary Horndeski, M.D.

Hi, thank you for sharing your question. In my opinion, based on your photos, you have enough skin laxity for a tummy tuck, however, if your heart is set on a mini tummy tuck, this is also a good option if combined with liposuction of the upper abdomen and flanks. I hope this helps.

Thank you for your question and pictures. I would recommend you a tummy tuck with liposuction for betters results. If you're willing to travel, Surgeons in the Dominican Republic have experience and very high standard of excellence when it comes to plastic surgery. I'm positive you can get what you're looking for

Thank you for your question and photos!
A tummy tuck will address excess skin & repair of the abdominal muscle. The abdominal wall can be weakened after pregnancy and (or) significant weight gain & loss. By repairing the muscle, not only does the appearance of your abdominal area improve, but your core strength as well. The repair of the muscle will cinch your waist like an inner corset, which will accentuate your curves. When done properly, your belly button should look natural. Liposuction will remove excess fat from unwanted areas with some skin retraction. Your expectations and health will dictate the best procedure(s) for you. I suggest a consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon to go over the options that best address your goals.
Best of luck!

Dhaval Patel MD
Double Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

Chicago
South Barrington
Oakbrook
Orland Park

If your goal is tight stomach with no rolls sitting (which even skinny people can have), your best bet is for the full tummy tuck.

Thank you for the question. Based on the photos, you will have the best possible result with a full tummy tuck (in combination with liposuction). The excess skin will be removed and your muscle weakness from your 3 pregnancies will be repaired. I wish you the best of luck. Vasileios Vasilakis, MD. Double board-certified, fellowship-trained plastic surgeon, Houston. TX.

Hi, that is an excellent question and I believe you answered it on your own your own! If you want a tight stomach with no rolls when you sit, a Full TT is your only option.
Your problem is mostly excess skin. Lipo does not treat skin, only excess fat. It might even make the skin looser.
JPlasma helps tighten the skin but it is not comparable to a TT on patients with excess skin. This is because a TT is the only procedure that gets RID OF ALL the excess skin.
A mini TT will only get rid of the excess skin on your lower abdomen. Your belly button will look a little off… the bottom half of your belly button might be stretched down but the upper part will still be heavy and horizontal.

If you want to be happy with your results a TT is the best option.
Dr. Miguel Mota

Thank you for your question and series of photographs.  Nothing replaces an in-person examination, but I think you would most benefit from a full tummy tuck and liposuction of your waist and flanks.  The tummy tuck will tighten your stomach muscles, helping to achieve a flatter appearance, while removing excess skin and adipose tissue.  Liposuction can be used to enhance your tummy tuck results by narrowing your waist and removing isolated areas of diet and exercise resistant fat.  I would favor the full approach because it appears that your skin and muscle laxity is present above and below your belly button. Hope that this helps

That much excess skin requires a full tummy tuck. If you have a mini for just lipo you will come to the conclusion that you really should have had the full tummy tuck

I think the ultimate choice depends on how much improvement you would need to see to feel like it was worth it. In my opinion, just lipo and j plasma would not improve things enough to justify surgery. Combined with a little low skin removal would be a faster recovery than full tummy tuck but not necessarily fully correct the looseness above the belly button. The scar will be about as long as the full tummy tuck, but there is no scar around the belly button. If you are looking for improvement but not perfection, this is a good choice.

The full tummy tuck would be the choice for the best/tightest result, but that is definitely the longest downtime and also includes the scar around the belly button. If you skip the muscle tightening, the recovery is much easier, but it will still include a scar around the belly button.

Remember, you can always have a full tummy tuck after you have done the other options, so some patients try the minimally invasive option first if they are willing to have another surgery 6-12 months later if the results don’t meet their expectations. Obviously, the ability to have two downtimes plays a big part in that decision. Good luck