How Does Skin Puckering/folding Resolve, and is There Anything Such As Massage Etc to Help Improve?

Question

I had a mini TT 10 days ago and Im terribly unhappy with the skin folds /puckers I am seeing. There is very little swelling and the healing is going really well but I look hideous, like a sewing project gone terribly wrong! Will I have to have another surgery to fix it? Does everyone have skin puckering? I was slim before the surgery and just had excess skin removed, so I am shocked at my results!

Kenneth Hughes, MD · Answer

I perform about 200 short scar tummy tucks or minitummy tucks a year along with about 200 or so full tummy tucks a year.  I would say that in short scar tummy tucks it is a little more difficult to get the incision closed with minimal folding, but I achieve it every time.  However, I have seen the results of other plastic surgeons that look similar in about 3 to 6 months despite looking different initially.  Frequently, this just takes time, and there is nothing that can be done to hasten this process.  Find a plastic surgeon with ELITE credentials who performs hundreds of tummy tucks and tummy tuck revisions 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

Stephen Salerno, MBBS, FRACS · Answer

Hello

	You are very early in the post operative phase to start commenting about scars.  ALl scars are puckered to start with and then settle down with time, however take a bout 8 weeks to start settling and up to 12 months before they may be right.  It is also very difficult to comment specifically without any photographs.

	You can also tape your scar or massage the area when it is healed.  You should check with your surgeon when you can start doing this.

	Regards

	Stephen Salerno

Jourdan Gottlieb, MD · Answer

It is hard to give meaningful reassurance without enough info to go on, and a photo would be the minimum.

	That said, when the incision is closed, the lower line in usually an almost straight line, the upper almost a semicircle, with a considerable length discrepancy. Gathers to some extent are universally present. But unlike clothe, in which the gathers or pleats are permanent, the skin remodels, and most of the irregularities present at day one are gone by 6 months. 

	All the best.

George Commons, MD (retired) · Answer

10 days is very early so you must be patient.   Many operations do not blossom forth until 6 to 12 weeks.  In addition, to be fair, we would need pre and post photos.   Be patient and let the healing progress.  The mini tummy tuck is a good procedure to remove a lower skin fold or repair the lower muscles.  It does not do much of anything for the belly button and can distort it if inappropriate candidates for the mini are selected.  Like any operation, the mini can be a star when the ideal candidate has the operation.  I bet you will be just fine as time passes.  My Best,  Dr C

How Does Skin Puckering/folding Resolve, and is There Anything Such As Massage Etc to Help Improve?

Answers (4)

Answer: The MINI TUMMY TUCK

Answer: The MINI TUMMY TUCK

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Mini Tummy Tuck

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.

How Does Skin Puckering/folding Resolve, and is There Anything Such As Massage Etc to Help Improve?

Answers (4)

Answer: The MINI TUMMY TUCK

Answer: The MINI TUMMY TUCK

Browse related questions

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Mini Tummy Tuck

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.