Abdominoplasty, also called a lipectomy, involves removing excess fat and skin from the abdomen in the front, as well as “strengthening” the rectus abdominis muscles.

It is generally done because the skin and fat are too much to just perform liposuction, in addition to the fact that the skin is usually saggy and has a risk of sagging if only the fat is removed. Also, the rectus muscles of the abdomen should be strengthened so that it is flat and strong, patients refer to this as a natural “girdle”, since it also allows you to eat less to reach satiety faster.

It is important to lose weight until you reach the ideal weight as much as possible, to remove excess fat and skin, since if this is not done, although the body shape looks good, the ideal figure is not achieved, this implies diet and exercise, preferably already used to it to continue it after surgery. It is said that a fair and tailored suit remains.

If necessary, liposculpture should be performed in the rest of the abdomen, hips, or in other regions because the fat is more in other parts of the body. Although these are optional procedures.

How is abdominoplasty performance?

First of all, as in each procedure, a complete personalized history is performed, a detailed review to determine the precise diagnosis and therefore plan the appropriate surgery for each patient, preoperative laboratory tests are requested, currently 1 week before PCR for Covid-19, chest x-ray, electrocardiogram, and at least one day before Immunoglobulins for Covid-19, or other PCR to ensure that the patient is not infected.

As it is a large surgery, a drain is left at the level of the pubis to avoid accumulations of serum (seroma) or blood (hematoma) that normally occurs due to the nature of the operation. The patient should be hospitalized for at least 1 day for surveillance, the drain is removed for 3 to 5 days, and she should walk hunched over for 2 weeks. A special girdle is also used for 4 months.

Possible complications are always mentioned to have all the information and to be able to sign the Informed Consent, a mandatory document in each surgery.

It is always advisable to clear all doubts with your surgeon to obtain the necessary confidence that you have the knowledge and experience of the procedure.

Subsequently, periodic reviews will be required to remove drainage, stitches, evolution of scars, edema, etc. Antibiotic and analgesic/anti-inflammatory will be indicated after surgery a few days

The change is noticeable immediately, but it must take at least 6 months to assess the final result, and the figure will continue to improve although it is no longer so noticeable because of how slow it is.

There may be some irregularities or asymmetries that need to be corrected later because the body is simply asymmetrical and it is not easy to leave all the treated areas exactly the same.

The last thing is the recommendation to always see a certified plastic surgeon since currently there are many charlatans, Masters in Plastic Surgery or Cosmiatria, or Estheticians or others since they make many mistakes and later they come to us to try to correct those complications.

Thanks to Dr. Adolfo Jasso Serrano, a plastic surgeon, who shared with us this information about abdominoplasty. He obtained a specialty in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. Previously, he completed the Bachelor of Surgeon at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. He has focused on performing facial rejuvenation surgery, abdominal lipectomy, and liposuction, breast implants, among others.

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