Question About Having Crohn's Disease and Wanting a Full Tummy Tuck?

This is one of those things that are best consulted on a patient by patient basis depending on how its manifesting on your particular case. Crohn's Disease is a serious matter and it could have some complications down the line if you do Tummy Tuck, that being said its best that you give us more info on your case so that we can make a better assesment, drop me a line and we can talk about it.

There are a number of issues to consider in the patient who wants an abdominoplasty and has Crohn's disease. The plastic surgeon gastroenterologist and general surgeon will weigh the risks and rewards and make a recommendation to the patient. In this particular case I think the abdominoplasty will probably be allowed.

-Having a tummy tuck in the setting of stable Crohn's disease should be okay.

-Your gastroenterologist is correct that you may need operations in the future, but having a tummy tuck would not preclude you from having an abdominal operation down the road if necessary.

-You mentioned "more surgery," so I gather that perhaps you have already had an operation.  The scar(s) that you may have from prior operations would have to be accounted for by your plastic surgeon, but the scars should not prevent you from having a tummy tuck.

-Best of luck to you!

Thank you for your question. You have to have clearance from your gastroenterologist before a having tummy tuck, because he or she knows your situation & if there is a possibility that you might need surgery in the future, he would not recommend tummy tuck .

You can have a tummy tuck if you have abdominal skin and fascia laxity.  However, the real question is if this will somehow interfere with the care of your Crohn's disease down the line.  It is possible that you will need surgery in the future to address any blockage that you may develop.  If you have a tummy tuck, you can still have this surgery.  However, it may be harder for your surgeon.  No one can predict what will happen with your Crohn's disease in the future or if you will need surgery for bowel obstruction.  You should obviously speak with your GI doctor to get a sense for your risks.  Perhaps you could even speak with a general surgeon (the surgeon who would perform the operation if you had a bowel obstruction) and get his opinion on how having an abdominoplasty would affect his ability to operate on your bowels in the future.  You can put together the advice of your GI doctor, the general surgeon and a board-certified plastic surgeon to help you make up your mind.  Good luck!

Dr. Parham Ganchi - NJ Plastic Surgeon

Crohn's disease, in and of itself, is not a contraindication for tummy tuck as long as it is quiescent and well controlled.  The main considerations are the medications that you may have to take to control the disease may have some impact on surgical bleeding or healing, and this should be reviewed in detail with your surgeon and your GI doctor.  Additionally, you should consider, as your gastroenterologist is suggesting, that there is a likelihood that you will need an abdominal operation, perhaps as an emergency, in the future, and this may affect the results of your abdominoplasty later.  If you are OK with all of this and still want to have an improvement in your tummy contour, I think that is reasonable to do.

Well-controlled Crohn's disease is not a contraindication to proceeding with tummy tuck surgery.  You are wise in seeking “clearance” through your gastroenterologist. Communication between him and your chosen plastic surgeon will be helpful.

 Best wishes.

You should work with both your plastic surgeon and gastroenterologist to determine if there are any limitations or risk associated with your crohn's disease.  I would be most  concerned if you had a flare up of your crohn's disease in the early post operative period. As long as your medical physician is on board there is no reason not to proceed.  

Assuming you are otherwise healthy, there is no medical reason for not being able to have a tummy tuck. If you need intestinal surgery in the future (which most people with Crohn's do not), the tummy tuck will not cause a problem.

Although your surgeon and anesthesiologist will want to be aware of the Pentasa (as with all medicines there are potential interactions with anesthetic agents), I don't see why if your general health is good you shouldn'tbe a candidate for a tummy tuck. 

This in not an intraabdominal procedure, and should not interfere with any future surgery you may require for complications of your Crohn's disease. 

It is not too early to begin the consultation process. All the best.