Is "Drawstring" Tummy Tuck Incision Procedure Feasible?

Shariaz,
This is a creative idea, but would lead to a terrible result. While some surgeries can be performed through the belly button, these operations just use the belly button as an access site. They make a small incision within or around the belly button to perform the surgery and then close the incision when they are done. They are not resecting any skin during their procedures. Now, it is correct that you can perform an endoscopic plication of your rectus fascia (your six pack) through a belly button incision. However, if you tried to resect any skin and then bunch it all up and sew it to the umbilicus stalk, it would look like a mess. There would be a bunched up appearance with pleats and folds in the skin that would not go away. The advice I have for you is to have a traditional abdominoplasty. While it may seem scary to have an incision, for the most part these incisions heal very well and the benefit is well worth the tradeoff of an incision.
I hope this is helpful.
David Shafer, MD
Shafer Plastic Surgery
New York City

Yes, in rare occasions this has been done but it rarely causes a satisfactory result and more commonly leaves persistently lax skin and a pleated appearance.

Simple rule of biogeometrics (I just made up that word): The more skin that has to be removed, the longer the incision has to be.  Most abdominplasties remove large amounts of skin so long incisions are unavoidable.  If a surgeon tries to cheat, that patient will end up with unsightly irregularties that can be fixed only by extending the incision.  By the way,this "law" applies to all operations.

The key to a good tummy tuck is not just to cut out extra skin, but to also address the underlying abdominal musculature and contour. This cannot be done with only an incision around the belly button in most cases. I would discourage this option in almost all cases.

This would be a great thing, if it would actually work. Unfortunately, using a pursestring-type tension on the abdomen would not pull the skin in the desired directions.