Can you have both a tummy tuck and ab etching procedure done?

Thank you for sharing your question.  Though some light liposuction of the upper skin flap created during a tummy tuck can be performed, i would delay abdominal etching until once fully healed after your tummy tuck.  Staging the procedures not only maximizes your results but minimizes your risk of healing issues.  Hope this helps.

 I would definitely not recommend  doing both operations at the same time. It would be both technically difficult to get it just right and very dangerous for wound healing. I would suggest doing the of Domino plasty first and then deciding if you even need the app wall edge. Best of luck!

I like to perform the etching in a separate procedure than a tummy tuck. I will upload pictures of the patient for you to look at. It typically takes a couple of days for it to post. I hope you find this information useful.

Thank you for your question. True etching is done with aggressive Liposuction which can take away important blood supply to the abdominal skin flap during a tummy tuck. Therefore, this is not safe to do. A small amount of Liposuction if the flap can be done safely but not to the extent of etching. To avoid complications, this should be delayed and done in a second procedure. I hope this helps. 

Thank you for your question.The combination would increase risks of skin necrosis than doing each separately.  There is also a technical issue of performing the procedure.  If you perform the etching and then the tummy tuck when the skin is removed and flap inset the etched areas may not be in the correct location.  In the reverse order the actual process of etching would be tough as the skin flap has now been detached and traction and tension is hard to control.I’d recommend looking into lipoabdominoplasty which when performed well can give you great results.  If you have further refinement etching can be performed later.Andre Levesque M.D.

I have to agree with the others that have posted here- I would also add that in my experience very few are good candidates for true abdominal Wall etching.  You really need an in person consultation with a board certified plastic surgeon to see what works best with your body and your goals.  Most of us include abdominal contouring with a tummy tuck that includes some degree of liposuction and fat excision.  best of luck and I hope this helps!

I began to do the "etching" over 15 years ago when it was still very new.  It would not be safe to do it with a tummy tuck because it could disrupt the blood flow to the flap and cause the lower aspect of the flap to die (necrosis).  In addition, you would not know exactly where to etch since the flap is being pulled downward.  The etching would have to be precisely in line with your anatomy in terms of where the segments of rectus muscles are separated.  The problem I have seen long-term with etching patients is that the connective tissue that attaches the skin to the muscle gets disrupted.  It looks good for a few years, but after 5-10 years, the skin starts to sag due to the loss of the connective tissue attachments.