- How much weight am I going to lose after the Abdominoplasty?
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In this surgery, there´s a fat and skin removal, so there will be a body weight reduction that varies according to the patient´s abdomen volume. However, it´s not the removed pounds that are going to define your aesthetic result but the harmony among your abdomen, back and rest of members. Paradoxically, the best abdomen aesthetic results are the ones that remove a small quantity of fat and skin. As some women after one or several childbirths with flaccid abdomen with fat skin accumulated in this area. These cases have excelent results. In other cases, when patient is overweight, the result will be satisfactory and proportional to the rest of the body. However, it´s worth to remember that even after the surgery, there will be accumulated fat in areas next to the abdomen. In this cases, it is recommended that patient continue a clinical and physiotherapy treatment to balance all areas.
- How long does it take me to achieve the definitive result?
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In the previous answer we made some observations about the scar evolution. It lacks some other ones about the new abdomen consistence, sensibility, volume, etc.
In the first months, there is a relative abdomen insensibility besides swelling periods that spontaneously recedes.
In this stage, it can has a streched out or a plan aspect. Over through the months with oriented modelling exercises, your abdomen start assuming the definitive result. Do not consider any result as definitive before the postoperative ( twelve to eighteen months).
- Does the Abdominoplasty leave a visible scar?
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A demolipectomy incision is placed over the pubic hair horizontally, prolonging it laterally, depending on the abdomen volume to be corrected. This incision is planned to be hidden under the bathing suits (some cases canga can be used) and will pass through several evolution periods:
- IMMEDIATE PERIOD: It lasts until the thirtyth day and it has an excelent and almost invisible aspect. In some cases, patients react to the stitches or to the curatives.
- MEDIATE PERIOD: From the thirtyth day until the twelfth month. In this period there will be a natural enlargement of the incision, such as color tone change, varying from red to brown, that little by little is going to get lighter. This period, the less favorable for healing evolution, is one that most worry patients. As we can´t hurry the healing natural process up, we recommend to the patients not to worry about it because the late period is in charge of reducing the incisions vestiges.
- LATE PERIOD: From the twelfth to the eighteenth month. In this period, the scar start getting lighter and less consistent achieving its definitive aspect. Any tummy tuck surgery evaluation must be done after this period.
- Is it true that a new navel will be made?
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No. Your own navel will be transplanted and if it´s necessary, remodeled. We should take care that there will be a scar around the navel that you are going to pass through the same inferior scar evolution (described in the previous item). For being a circular scar, the evolution can´t be what we want to. In some cases, it results in an artificial aspect. This happens because of the scar evolution anomaly in some patients which can be corrected with small repairs under local anesthesia, after a few months.
- Does Abdominoplasty correct accumulated fat over the stomach area?
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Not always. It depends on the torso (chest + abdomen). If it is the short kind, it will be hardly corrected. If it´s the long kind the result is favorable. Besides, the fat thickness that covers the whole body is very important.
- What kind of bathing suit should I wear after the surgery?
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The bathing suit kind will depend on your size. The usage of low neck clothes depends on the results. Remember that the surgeon´s scalpel only improves your own shapes that can even be improved with an aestheticist or a physiotherapist care after the first postoperative month.
- Will I have kids? Won´t the result be damaged?
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Your gynecologist will tell if you can or can´t be pregnant. About the surgery´s result, it can be preserved unless your weight isn´t controlled by a specialist. But we recommend that you should have all planned children before doing the abdominoplasty.
- I´ve heard Abdominoplasty is a very painful surgery. Is it true?
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No. A normal dermolipectomy evolution must not be painful. There´s a misunderstanding among some patients who do this surgery simultaneously to other gynecologic surgeries that report postoperative pains. Not all surgeons recommend these associated surgeries because it shows operative risks besides the inconvenient pains and less favorable results.
- Are there risks during this surgery?
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Rarely it brings serious complications unless the techniques criterions are not followed. This is due to the convenient surgery act preparation. We also can associate this surgery simultaneously to other ones.
- What kind of anesthesia is used in this surgery?
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General anesthesia. In special cases peridural or simular can be used. Nowadays even local anesthesia under sedation are used (special cases).
- How long does this surgery last?
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Around 120 minutes.
- How long does the internment period last?
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From 12 to 24 hours (normal evolution).
- Are curatives used?
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Yes. Special elastic curatives, exchanged weekly (first eight curatives). After that, they are periodic.
- When are the stitches removed? Is it painful?
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Between the fifth and the thirteenth day.
- How is the postoperative evolution?
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You must not forget that until you achieve the desired result you´ll pass through several stages of this surgery. That´s how we explained in the second item about the scar evolution (until the eighteenth month). In the third item, we answered about the abdomen shape, its sensibility and consistence evolution. However, you can be worried about the desire to achieve the final result earlier. Be patient because your organism will be in charge of solving all the intermediate problems. Problems that can call your friends attention: “Is it going to disappear?”. Obviously, you must clear up all your doubts with us. Some patients are anxious about this stage (swelling, insensibility, scar transition, etc). This is temporary and generally it is projected to the desire of achieving the final result earlier. Remember that no tummy tuck surgery must be evaluated as definitive before the twelve to eighteen months. In obese patients cases, after the eighth day a small quantity a yellow liquid is eliminated through one or more stitches. We have enough resources to avoid that this loss brings complications.