Is a Plastic Surgeon the Only Kind of Doctor That Repairs the Stomach Muscles That Have Separated?

A general surgeon can repair your stomach muscles. You just have to define your goals. The incision for the repair will usually be on the anterior abdominal wall and be more visible than if a PS does the repair in conjunction with a tummy tuck.

You should probably seek out a plastic surgeon who does this several times a week. Find a plastic surgeon with ELITE credentials who performs hundreds of tummy tuck procedures each year. Then look at the plastic surgeon's website before and after photo galleries to get a sense of who can deliver the results. Kenneth Hughes, MD Los Angeles, CA

Yes, it is usually during a tummy tuck that muscle diastsis is repaired.  This procedure should be performed by a board certified plastic surgeon in my opinion.

General surgeons probably could do this but they rarely do. Diastasis repair by plication is not the standard technique that they use to fix hernias. Most are not familiar since this problem is not covered by insurance.

Many surgeons can repair your rectus diastasis but if you are looking for the best result this should be done in conjunction with a tummy tuck and this is best performed by a board certified plastic surgeon.

it is not privative for plastic surgeon any general surgeon could do it but by experience the plastic surgeon perform more than 100 a year against a few a year, you might  choose  to whom could you go

These are almost all repaired by plastic surgeons. In my six years of training and practice in general surgery I never saw one of these. During my plastic surgery training and practice, it has been about one a week. 

That is not to say that there are not some general surgeons who are properly skilled at repairing the rectus separation, but for example in my hospital, none would do these. 

All the best. 

As far as I know, with regard to medical specialization, the repair of the abdominal muscles for this issue is only covered by physicians who are board certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Certainly other types of physicians do this, but it is not an issue that they were trained for, at least during residency training, nor competency confirmed by an American Board of Medical Specialties Board. Keep in mind that there are other types of repairs, such as a hernia, which is a very different situation; General surgeons typically deal with that issue.

Good luck, hope that answers your question.

Matthew Concannon MD

All surgeons who have privileges to operate on the abdomen have an understanding of the anatomy of the tummy wall and are capable of repairing the separation. A plastic surgeon, however, probably has the most in depth training and experience from his or her official residency, being guided through the surgery many times by experts in the field.