“How does it matter now, whether I look out of shape or in perfect shape. I am married and have kids now”. This is how a regular lady reacts when somebody compares their previous appearance with the present. Or if it is a lady working in the media or a public office it will either a change in the nature of the work to using clothes so as hide the change.
Many of the ladies with these sagging & bulging abdomens, sometimes with hernias think that it is part of bearing children and suffer the discomfort caused by them. They get adjusted with them until to the point that it limits their activities and then going to treatment will give less optimal results.
During pregnancy the abdominal wall including the skin and muscle stretches to the maximum extent and soon after the delivery everything shrinks in their sizes but not to the original size, the extent of which differs for every individual. Sometimes a wide gap in the muscle leads to protrusion of the intestines outside leading to hernias but many a time there will be only a loose skin which is protruding out and hanging down.
Many a times it is neglected till the stage of hernia is reached where sometimes it may require and emergency operation. With the current economic revolution, the pressures on individuals are increasing, and more and more ladies are working. With all the above mentioned problems their efficiency at the work decrease. “What can we do to improve this situation. “Fortunately with the developments of many new techniques in cosmetic surgery it is now possible to go back in times to the previous shapes by overcoming all the above mentioned problems.
Abdominoplasty or tummy tuck is the best procedure in dealing with the above problems and achieving a good shape and restoring the integrity and strength of abdominal wall to the previous state.
Fortunately most of the caesarean section scars are now very lowly placed and are horizontal resulting in no additional scars and the whole abdominoplasty can be done through the same scar.
In this procedure most of the hanging extra skin in removed and looseness of the underlying muscle is tightened by rectal plication.
Sometimes the umbilicus also gets pushed down and this can be corrected by separating the umbilicus and placing it at a new location which is normal. If there is an associated hernia, then the herinia should be treated first.
Now a days abdominoplasty is combined with liposuction leading to better contouring of the sides and upper part of the abdomen. Also combining the liposuction decreases the amount of cutting(undermining) beneath the skin and thus decreases to possible complications to almost to zero.
Abdominal muscle wall tightening will increase the strength of the abdomen which was weakened by the previous stretch and also decreases the tension on the overlying skin and thus decreases the skin complications that occur due to stretching of the skin especially when combined with liposuction.
Using delayed absorbable sutures the onus of suture removal is also absent and hence once discharged from the Clinic which is usually on 2nd or 3rd day one follow up after 15 days is sufficient.
There will not be any visible marks or scars in any visible part of the abdomen and the scar will be in the lower most part of the abdomen hidden within the clothes. Risks wise it is very simple and safe procedure with a risk same as a caesarean section which is much more commonly done. Person should wear a supportive abdominal binder for sometime after the operation till the tissues heal.
Thus we can say that abdominoplasty is a boon for those people who are suffering silently, may be because they do not know or they are scared. If it is combined with liposuction it can give very good contours of the tummy and thus improve a lady’s outlook especially if she is working. It is also very helpful for those people who come often in public and media to improve their image and thus extend their careers.
