Abdomen – Abdominoplasty – ELMA

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before	after

Before	After

Before	After

Before	After

Before	After

Before	After

Before	After

Before	After

Before	After

An abdominoplasty is a surgical procedure which eliminates excess skin and fat tissue from the mid and lower abdomen and tightens the muscles of the abdominal wall..

There are various techniques for abdominoplasty and it can be combined with other surgical procedures including liposuction.  The reconstruction of the abdominal wall is one of the most appreciated aesthetic surgical procedures.

Women, after having children, find that sometimes the abdominal wall is distended and flaccid.  This distension gives a round appearance and sometimes also causes fat wrinkles which are unpleasant and can’t be removed by diets.

• The correct treatment is to do an anatomical evaluation of all the structures and think in three levels: 

1.  
   1. First, how is the skin, is there extra or no, are there stretch marks or no, and if it’s distended.
   2. Second, how is the fat; is there an excess of fat, is it distributed asymmetrically, or are there clusters of fat under the stomach, in the sides, in the waistline, etc…
   3. Third, how is the muscular wall, if the muscles are connected, if there is good muscular tone, if the abdomen has the shape of an hour glass or if the muscles are distended and separated.

• We have to keep two points in mind while planning the operation: 

1.  
   1. First, design a scar that will allow us to remove all the excess skin and creases.
   2. Second, remember that this scar should remain hidden under underwear and swimsuits, so we have to give it the shape of a U, so that it doesn’t appear on the sides.

In older women, we have to evaluate if the is horizontal so that when we do the surgery and tighten the area it stabilizes and rejuvenates.  We also have to study if the abdomen protrudes and if liposuction is necessary.

Anesthesia

In Abdominal Surgery – Abdominoplasty, general anesthesia is used or local anesthesia can be used in specific cases of mini-abdominoplasty.

Patients who undergo operations under general anesthesia don’t remember the operation.

Surgical Process

The operation consists of lifting the skin and fat from the abdomen, reinforcing the muscles which separate after pregnancy, giving the abdomen the extended characteristic.  The excess skin and fat under the belly button are removed

In this surgery we do the reconstruction on three levels:  skin surgery, remodeling of the fat with or without liposuction, and muscular reconstruction.

Afterwards, the wound is closed with an intradermic suture so there are no zipper scars.  We also advise patients to take two weeks off to recover before doing any more energetic activity in order to let the muscular wall heal well.

With all these precautions, the aesthetic result is very satisfactory.

Pre-Operation

Before the operation we will take medical photographs of the abdominal region, which are always necessary to correctly plan the surgery.  They will help us evaluate the deformities in your silhouette before the operation and we will have them in the operating room as reference points during the surgery.  These have the same value for a plastic surgeon as x-rays have for a traumatologist.

Surgical Time

The exact time of the surgery depends on the exact problems to be fixed, and if there are other, complimenting operations being done at the same time.

La duración media de las abdominoplastias variará de entre 2 a 4 horas.

Post-Operation

The majority of patients don’t have any pain, although they do notice a slight discomfort, inflammation, and light pressure.  This is all easily controlled with the appropriate treatment.

After the operation a sterile, orthopedic girdle is usually applied, designed specifically for this type of procedure.  Sometimes we substitute the girdle for some sticky elastic bandages in the beginning, to go to the elastic girdle later.

We begin to remove the stitches after the first week after the operation, all the stitches will be removed by two weeks after the operation.  The stitches are always removed in two stages.