Can I pierce my belly button after a tummy tuck?

Thanks for the question. 2-4 months is enough time to get a piercing. Then, if you talk to your surgeon and get approval, there is no obstacle to having a piercing. I wish you all the best.

The worst that can happen is you can compromise the blood supply to the umbilcius resulting in tissue death and/or infection with subsequent loss of the piercing tract and undesireable scarring.

I wouldn't recommend doing an invasive procedure to your tummy, as it is not yet healed enough.  If you get an infection, you could loos a lot of tissue, at least theoretically. 

I assume you have a hernia based on you Q.  This is odd, as it should be handled at time of tummy tuck.

I fully agree with Dr. Placik. The Blood supply to the skin around the belly button stalk is not normal at only 6 weeks after surgery and in many women the blood supply of the belly button column itself is not as yet normal. ANY injury to either area may result in healing difficulty and or infection which may worsen and result in loss of a patch of the skin around the belly button or the belly button itself.

Giving the area 6-8 months to heal and reform its blood supply increases the margin of safety for such procedures.

The same holds for umbilical hernias. The hernia should have been fixed before or during your Tummy Tuck surgery. At this point, unless it bothers you or becomes a surgical emergency, I would give the tummy tuck time to heal before going in again.

The skin on your stomach is not quite normal yet, as the blood supply is still mostly coming from the sides (rather than from all directions).  If you get your belly button pierced and develop an infection, it could spread much faster / wider than you would normally think.  Infection / swelling interferes with blood flow, which make it easier for bacteria to take hold.  You are risking a serious infection (which rarely could be disastrous), so why not wait a while and take less risks?  As a side benefit, your scars will have already started to relax, and they can do a better job piercing your navel.

Dr.B

The worst that can happen is that you could compromise the otherwise excellent result that you have...this can include bleeding, impairing the blood supply and, at its absolutely worst, tissue necrosis with loss of tissue and thickened scars.  None of this is likely, but it's possible, and the earlier in your recovery that you do this, the greater the risks.  You should, of course, not even consider this without talking to your own PS.  In fact, it's probably okay to do it at 6 weeks - but it's extremely unwise: what's the rush?  I would advise talking to your PS and probably waiting a good 3 months or, even better, 6 months before considering something like this.  The hernia is an entirely separate issue - if you have a hernia or even think you have a hernia - you should not have a piercing under ANY condition.  Ideally, the hernia would have been repaired at the time of your TT but if it wasn't - for whatever reason - you need to have that taken care of before you can even consider a piercing.  So - in the absence of a hernia I would advise waiting for 3-6 months after a TT.  In the presence of a hernia, you are playing with fire if you pierce your BB...please don't...

I hope that this helps, and good luck,

Dr. E

 

Vote number 4 for the fact that 6 weeks is still too soon after a TT to pierce your belly button.  Infection and tissue blood flow compromise and poor healing issues are the main concerns.  Since it is elective, wait 3-4 months to get it done.