Why Was I Turned Down for a Tummy Tuck?

     Although losing 20 lbs may allow for a better final result, I am not so stringent in the BMIs of prospective patients.  It would be nice for everyone to be at goal weight, but that is not realistic.  Find a plastic surgeon with ELITE credentials who performs hundreds of tummy tucks 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

Thank you for your question. I recommend you see a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon and get another opinion.  Every surgeon has their comfort zone and apparently this was not in that surgeons comfort zone.  If two tell you the same thing, then I would listen carefully to the advice.   I hope this helps.

Some surgeons prefer their patients to lose weight prior to body contouring. This is not necessary however in many patients incapable of losing weight will benefit from the procedure.

Hi themamma60, Statistically, heavier patients risk more surgical complications. BMI has been shown to be a poor overall predictor of health but carries some of the risks as mentioned. There are other factors, such as the fact that you may be "big" but may not have excessive body fat, to mitigate this risk.  If you know what these risks are, it is appropriate to consider going forward. It may be your doctors thinking that if you are committed to loose weight prior to the surgery, than you will continue to do so after your surgery. I have seen that most patients loose 10 lbs or so after their abdominoplasties. This improves the results. My experience is that for most patients, the abdomonoplasty helps them keep weight off and encourages changes in lifestyle. 

Your height and weight would not preclude me from operating on you.  If you are planning on losing more weight then weight loss should occur prior to a tummy tuck as the result will be lost if some one loses weight afterwards however if you are at a consistent weight which does not change then there is no reason to delay your tummy tuck.  There are increased risks to cosmetic surgery as the BMI increases and time under the knife increase.  The larger a patient is the longer surgery takes and therefore the riskier it is.  But if you have a clear understanding of the risks and choose to take them on then go for it.