10 months post brachioplasty and I have dents in my arms. Why did this happen? (Photo)

Your surgeon-provided intra-operative photos show how the skin is removed and tightened, and then surgically closed with sutures. The "dents" you now see are constriction bands caused by localized areas of excessive tightening or scar contraction. It is easy to see how this can happen if you look at the closure photos.Surgical revision of the brachioplasty scars or selective liposuction are the two operations that may be of help. Your overall improvement is quite pronounced, especially given the degree of loose skin removed, so one option is to do nothing. Localized Z-plasty can also be an option. talk to your surgeon, for s/he has done a good job here, just not perfect. We all try for that, but rarely succeed. Best wishes! Dr. Tholen

Thank you for your question regarding your brachioplasty ten months post and why you have indentations. Thank you for your pictures—most experienced board-certified plastic surgeons who specialize in arm lifts. Arm reductions and brachioplasties perform arm liposuction simultaneously with the arms reduction. If you scrutinize your pictures, especially the second picture to the left, you have an indentation on the upper arm during surgery. I wonder if it correlates to your current indentation. Either way, it could've been an indentation left during surgery or perhaps a suture broke after surgery. REgardless of what caused the indentation, you should probably be more concerned about the treatment.
Regarding treatment, you should consider liposuction of the areas around it and perhaps transfer of fat into the indentation. Alternatively, a Z plasty can be done to relieve the tension of the scar. Please seek a board-certified plastic surgeon who has performed hundreds of arm lifts.

It looks like the area of the dent was over-tightened, giving the constriction band appearance.  This will have to be revised surgically.  A little liposuction above & below the dent should help - but an in-person consult is needed to sort out the areas of fat or skin excess, before committing to a surgical plan.All the best,

Hello,These are due to area of over tightening during the procedure. You will need a revision to improve the contour.  The simplest way would be with liposuction reducing the volume above and below the dent, however the result may be less impressive than revision brahioplasty.  Choosing the latter would not be as involved as the original surgery, but much of the incision would have to be reopened. Best of luck!

Thanks for your question.  It would be helpful to see a pre op photo to see what your arm contour was like before surgery.  There are 2 possible reasons for the areas of contour difference.   I have seen some patients have areas of banding in their arms preoperatively.  Even with brachioplasty and contouring, these areas can persist. Thats possible, given that the areas of "dents" in your arms appear similarly located. More likely, unfortunately, is that the areas of contour difference are areas where skin was more aggressively removed. At 11 months, it is unlikely that thinks will change much more. I would discuss your concerns with your surgeon.  Sometimes a revision can help.  Best regards.

Thank you for including the intra-operative photos - these are very helpful. It appears that above the "dent" in your arm there was less skin/fat taken than below the "dent" and that this area was made less tight. This can be revised either by taking more skin above the contour abnormality or by doing some liposuction above the "dent."