Tummy Tuck - David Newman, MD Temecula Plastic Surgeon
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Skin Removal Surgery

As training residents in Plastic Surgery, we were taught that “plastic surgery concerns itself with the skin and all of its contents”. In other words, we were expected to know not only what is going on with the skin but really the anatomy of the entire body. But counter to that is the fact that almost all procedures we perform in cosmetic surgery involve lifting, removing and even changing the texture of skin.

Though training in plastic surgery has gone 360 in terms of ideas, the actual surgery has continued to change and evolve over time. Case in point is the revolution in face lifting. Facelift procedures lift the face to restore a youthful, natural appearance. In the olden days, it was just the skin that was lifted but with further advancement, attention was directed to the deeper tissue. It turns out that lifting and directing deeper layers gives a stronger but paradoxically smoother and more even result. In fact,  with these newer lifts, it’s usually hard to tell, even as a plastic surgeon, that a patient has had a face lift.

skin removal after weight loss
skin removal

Body Restoration after Weight Loss

Medically assisted weight loss with injectible GLP-1 agonists  such as Mounjaro, Ozempic, Zepbound, and Weygovi have led to a revolution in health improvement and in many cases completely eliminated major diseases and risk factors for Diabetes, Obesity, heart and kidney disease. But as people lose significant weight, skin and the underlying tissues become loose and the injury from being overweight becomes apparent as scarring and skin injury. Body restoration involves not only removal of skin that is loose but also lifting deeper tissues to restore a youthful appearance.

The most common skin removal procedure is a tummy tuck, where excess skin and the underlying fat are removed from the lower abdomen. The muscle layers are also addressed to flatten the entire abdomen and any excess fat over the hips is also removed to create a beautiful contour. Tummy tuck surgery creates smooth visual lines that extend from the upper abdomen to the lower abdomen and into the thighs.

Belt Lipectomy

Most patients that have a tummy tuck have removal of excess skin of the lower abdomen. Thus, the scar often extends from hip to hip.  But there are some patients that have excess skin about the waist that extends past the hip and onto the back which requires more skin removal. Belt lipectomy is the surgery that involves removal of excess skin of the back but also helps to smooth skin of the outer thigh if that is also excessive. Of course, it’s important to seek the consultation with a plastic surgeon to see if you qualify for just a tummy tuck or also require a belt lipectomy in addition. When tummy tucks are done at the same time as a belt lipectomy, the resulting surgery is called a body lift. Body lifts remove excess skin at the level of the lower abdomen and hip but all the way around the body and so there is a scar 360 degrees around the body.

skin removal surgery
arm lift

Arm Lift

Patients may develop looseness of skin of the upper arm and the surgery that removes skin excess is called a brachioplasty or arm lift. In this procedure, skin is removed to tighten the arm and fat is also removed where excessive. The best candidates for this surgery have minimal fat excess.