Achieve Your Ideal Body Image with a Designer Tummy Tuck
Tummy tucks in the Atlanta area by Sheldon Lincenberg, MD, a Mayo Clinic-trained, double board-certified plastic surgeon, are known as designer tummy tucks because the surgical plan for each patient’s tummy is so highly customized just for the shape of contours of their waist and abdominal area.
What Makes a Tummy Attractive?
We all know an attractive belly when we see one. It has the appearance of youth. The features suggest the fitness and trimness of a body that has not suffered the agonies of age, weight gain, surgery or pregnancy.
It does not take a plastic surgeon to know what makes a belly look good.
Smooth skin is certainly a plus - free of stretch marks and scars.
Thin is definitely "in.” The abdomen has several contours to it which become hidden when we gain weight and fat covers those contours. Too little fat may be appealing to body building competitors, but it can add a stark nature to the average body.
Attractive "abs" have their borders - the rib cage on the top, smooth contours on the sides, and no rolls on the bottom.
We also like to see a slight hollow below the ribcage, tight flat rectus muscles and not a hint of a lower pooch of fat.
The navel should look more like a cat's eye than a purse-string bag.
People always ask if they should lose weight before a tummy tuck. Since the goal of a tummy tuck is to create smooth contours and young skin, Dr. Lincenberg says that the right time for surgery is when the patient is at a stable weight. Pre-operative weight reduction is good when the weight is a recent addition, such as during pregnancy.
A Custom Designed Approach
In designing the right operation for the tummy, plastic surgeons determine what kind of work should be done on three layers of tissue - the skin, the fat and the muscle. The traditional tummy tuck (or abdominoplasty) works on all layers, but in recent years the techniques of liposuction, ultrasonic liposuction and endoscopy allow a truly customized approach to abdominal contouring. Dr. Lincenberg refers to this as a "designer" tummy tuck.
The Icing on the Cake
If the work on the muscle and fat layers is the cake, then the skin surgery is the icing. Usually the skin from the navel to the pubic hair is redundant and it can be removed. If this skin contains stretch marks or scars, these marks will be gone permanently. The smoother skin above the navel is pulled down to cover the whole abdomen. The skin from the sides can be pulled toward the middle to tighten the waist and the loose skin in the lap crease can be drawn up a little bit.
Stitching of the skin is completely planned before surgery. Dr. Lincenberg has his tummy tuck patients come in on the day prior to surgery, with a bathing suit or brief. He marks the position of the scar so that it will hide beneath this garment. Careful attention to this detail can be the difference between a good result and a great result.
Plastic surgeons can utilize many techniques to achieve a nice result for every patient. Patients have different body types. The most common problem is the man or woman with extra fat and skin on the lower abdomen and looseness of the muscles. This person will have the best result from a tummy tuck that flattens the stomach by cutting away the lower roll and tightening the muscles. Liposuction will shrink the love handles. The surgical scar is low and goes from hip to hip.
Many of Dr. Lincenberg’s patients are women in good physical condition who have had children. They do not have loose skin or many stretch marks. In this case, the skin scar can be much shorter, sometimes entirely within the pubic hair. The muscles are tightened by operating under the skin using the endoscopic camera and instruments. Fat bulges are sculpted with liposuction. Endoscopic abdominoplasty is also useful if there is a surgical scar on the upper abdomen.
Some people have a belly with firm, flat muscles, yet there may be an excess of fat and/or some loose skin. In this case, there is no need to work on the muscle layer. The fat can be sculpted with traditional or ultrasonic suction lipectomy. The skin can be drawn down and smoothed out like a tablecloth. For these patients, recovery will be shorter and less painful.
By finding out what a patient’s goals are for their tummy tuck and then designing a highly customized surgical plan using the techniques and tools that will provide the desired result for their abdomen, Dr. Lincenberg can then utilize his surgical skills and artistic approach to create a designer tummy tuck for every patient.