Tummy Tuck Orange County

Swelling is a normal part of any surgery. Not only does the area that has been operated on undergo swelling, but the entire body does. It is common to have the hands and feet swollen after the procedure. The compression garment will aid in reducing the swelling in the abdominal area. The rest of the body will slowly return to normal. We generally ask patients to wear some sort of compression for the first 6 weeks.

Absolutely. The key things for a tummy tuck to be hidden are the height of the incision and the opening for the belly button creation. If these two aspects of the procedure are performed meticulously, then when wearing a bikini, it will be very difficult to discern if the patient has had any surgery performed.

Although not ideal cosmetically, we have had patients get pregnant after a tummy tuck procedure and successfully carry their baby to term. Having a tummy tuck does not affect the pregnancy.

A tummy tuck procedure is not a weight-loss procedure. The skin and fat really do not weigh much. In general, Dr. Esmailian has removed anywhere from less than a pound and up to 20 lbs in certain cases.

There is no other way to really tighten loose abdominal skin without surgery. Skin that has been stretched from pregnancy or weight gain and then weight loss will have lost its capacity to snap back. The only way to tighten the contours is to remove the extra skin and stretch the rest of the skin down. Liposuction, whether it is laser (smart lipo), Vaser (ultrasonic lipo), or power-assisted (PAL), will not tighten the skin significantly enough to give an appreciable and consistent result. Some of the newer modalities, such as Body Tite that rely on radiofrequency, have shown a bit more contraction of the skin over Vaser lipo and other similar techniques. But again, this is still not very significant when compared to a tummy tuck.

Dr. Esmailian suggests a downtime of 6 weeks before patients can resume full activity. This means the patient can go back to the gym and restart their workouts. Obviously, you should start slow and listen to your body. Everyone has a different rate of healing. You will not harm any part of the procedure after resuming full activity at 6 weeks, but your body may not quite be ready.

Our patients have a special tape placed on their incisions at the time of surgery. This tape will provide compression, staying on for about 2 weeks. Once the tape is removed, we ask our patients to start our scar treatment regime. This usually begins with a silicone gel cream that we have our patients use for 3 months’ time, applying it 2x per day. After this period, we provide our patients with an order form to purchase and start applying silicone gel strips to their incisions. To have the best outcome from the surgical scars, we ask our patients to use the tape up to 1 year post-op. Remember, scar outcome depends on three factors: The surgeon, the patient, and how well a scar treatment program is undertaken.

Tummy tuck surgery will not cause stretch marks. Any stretch marks that are seen at or below the belly button before surgery will be removed. Any stretch marks above the belly button generally will remain but will be moved down with the pulling and repositioning of the skin.

We ask our patients to sleep with their backs elevated as well as their thighs. We want to be in a beach chair position. This takes the tension off the incision and skin and allows better perfusion to the area.

No. Insurance may cover what is termed as a panniculectomy. This is the simple removal of the lower part of the pannus (hanging skin) and closure. It does not involve any cutting around the umbilicus; hence it does not address the muscles or any skin above the belly button. It is for severe cases of excess skin and fat.

5-14 days.

Everyone is different, but the first 48 hours are the most difficult time of recovery. After the first two days, most of our patients don’t require any more pain medication in the form of narcotics. Most will resort to Tylenol after that.

If a patient gains weight after any kind of procedure, including a tummy tuck, it follows the same patterns as it did beforehand. Having liposuction/tummy tuck surgery does not change things if weight gain happens afterward. Weight gain can affect the results, which is why we always operate at a time when the patient is stable at their current weight.