No to Tummy Tuck. Will I benefit from lipo 360 and Renuvion alone? (Photo)

I can understand your distaste for a tummy tuck when you see so many poorly placed and thick scars. It doesn't have to be that way. Although liposuction will do a fantastic job with your hip/waist area, your abdominal skin and muscle wall will be impervious to Vaser, laser, J Plasma, or Bodytite. Collagen and skin tightening supplements are absolutely worthless and their sale should be prohibited because of complete lack of efficacy. You can have a body that looks great in the tiniest of bikinis with the proper surgery.

Hello! Thank you for your question. Your photos show excess skin of the lower abdomen, stretch marks, outpouching of the mid-abdomen, and full flanks. How you wish to proceed will depend on your personal preferences and how they fit in with your budget and lifestyle. There are several variables that plastic surgeons use to evaluate abdomens - skin, volume, and shape. Liposuction with certainly reduce your 'volume' but it will leave skin draping or wavy as there is an excess of skin. Your skin will not tighten very well as evidenced by the excess (draping on the side view) and the stretch marks. It is likely that you will be disappointed with non-invasive techniques. It is not to say that there will not be any benefit but the question is - will it be enough benefit? That is a question that only you can answer. Further, it is true that not everyone wants/is willing to undergo an abdominal wall tightening procedure, but it is possible to perform a panniculectomy, a procedure similar to a TT but without the musculature tightening. It tends to be an easier recovery. That would help reduce the overall skin surface area. It is great that you are going to a plastic surgeon to discuss your options. I would encourage you to be open and honest about what you would like your body to look like. From these photos, it seems that a full TT would be a choice. But that is a very personal choice. It very well may be that liposuction was selected based on minimal downtime, less invasiveness, easier recovery, etc. And it may leave you underwhelmed in the long run. Best of luck! Jules A Feledy, Jr, MD American Board of Plastic Surgery, American Society of Plastic Surgery

Dear Bree C,
based on your photos, you look like a good candidate for a TT. Liposuction would leave a lot of loose skin. Full tummy tuck should tighten your abdominal muscles and remove the excess skin. Flanks liposuction would give you a better shape. I would suggest you to consult a board-certified plastic surgeon because only after a thorough examination you will get more information and recommendations.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

Hi, thank you for sharing your question. You are a great candidate for 360 Lipo but the amount of skin excess you have your lower abdomen may not be amenable to renuvion. The extent to which your plan is successful will depend on what you want for your goal. Consult in person with your plastic surgeon for the best advice.

Save your money or do a full abdominoplasty. The other procedures will leave you with loose skin and you’ll wish you just did the tummy tuck.
Dr. Taranow

Let me start off by saying nobody wants to have a tummy tuck. Nobody wants the large scar, nobody wants the long recovery and nobody wants the potentially weird looking bellybutton.

Operations should be prescribed based on what they treat and what the underlying ideology is.

For example you wouldn’t take insulin if you had a headache.

In regards to aesthetics it’s not different. The process starts by making a proper assessment or diagnosis.

For the front of the abdomen there are four variables that contribute to shape and contour.

In other words if someone doesn’t like the way their belly looks it is always because of one or more of these four variables. There are exceptions like those who’ve had previous surgery but for the most part everybody can be categorized into one or more of these four variables.

The variables are skin laxity usually due to previous pregnancies, significant weight loss age or genetics.

Excess subcutaneous fat due to genetic fat distribution and obesity.

Muscle separation from previous pregnancies call diastase is recti. This condition does not affect the muscles themselves but rather the fascia between the muscles is stretched.

The last variable is excess visceral fat or intra-abdominal fat. Men tend to get excess visceral fat but there are plenty of women who have it as well. Visceral fat can only be lost the weight loss.

Your case shows clear pregnancy related changes combined with age which are skin laxity and muscle separation. You are the textbook perfect candidate for a tummy tuck and because of that you are not a candidate for Liposuction.

You don’t have a subcutaneous fat issue and Liposuction only treats subcutaneous fat.

Fat is not why you don’t like the way your abdomen looks.

Your abdomen looks different than it did before your first child because you have a skin laxity and muscle separation.

For those two conditions only a tummy tuck will treat it.

Liposuction with Renuvion will be a complete waste of money and an unnecessary operation.

I purchased Renuvion when it first came out. I used a device for a year and literally saw zero skin tightening by objective and subjective measures. None of my patients appreciated any skin tightening whatsoever.

I didn’t have a single patient saying that it improved their skin.

I could not honestly promote or recommend the device so it sat collecting dust for another year until I finally sold it.

You can probably find providers especially those not trained in plastic surgery who only offer a liposuction to do your procedure but don’t expect a great results.

I would much rather you except your body the way it is and not spend your money.

Either do the right procedure or don’t have surgery.

There may be other operations you can have if you want to look better. There is probably breast surgeries that may be helpful or facial surgeries but for your tummy you need a tummy tuck.

Like I said earlier. Nobody wants to have a tummy tuck. I don’t want to have a tummy tuck but some people need them.

Best,

Mats Hagstrom MD