Scottsdale Full Abdominoplasty Procedure

Pregnancy or weight gain can cause a woman's abdominal muscles to stretch apart, the skin to lose elasticity, and unwanted fat to accumulate, thereby resulting in stretch marks and self-consciousness.

An abdominoplasty, or tummy tuck, is designed for these women, who have seen dramatic changes in their bodies that cannot be reversed by diet, exercise, or natural healing over time. The abdominal muscles have become too weak from stress and, like a broken rubber band, will never snap back into place.

The abdominoplasty surgery restores the female abdomen by stitching the abdominal muscles back into place, while removing extra fat and skin stretches out stretch marks, leaving a beautiful, shapely waistline with the abdominal muscles athletically aligned. Full vs. Mini abdominoplasty
The full abdominoplasty is designed for patients for whom maximum skin and fat removal is required, especially in cases of skin laxity above the navel. A scar in a miniabdominoplasty is the length of a typical cesarean section scar, while a full tummy tuck scar can run as long as from hip to hip; however, Dr. Shapiro always works with his patients to ensure that as much of the scar can be covered by undergarments or a bikini bottom. A full abdominoplasty requires that the skin from the belly button down be excised, requiring the creation of a new navel. The Procedure
Dr. Shapiro's Scottsdale abdominoplasty surgery fully corrects abdominal separation and brings muscles back to a youthful position for a lovely contoured waistline and a flat, stretch-mark free tummy. The incision is made along the lower waist. The skin and fat are then lifted away from the muscle. The abdominal muscles are sutured together to bring the muscles back into a fit alignment. The lifted skin is then pulled toward the incision, with any extra skin and fat being cut away completely. This stretches out the skin, removing stretch marks and extra rolls. This also effectively lifts the inner thighs and pubic area for a more attractive lower body.
Remember that the belly button is just a scar that everyone has. Because the full abdominoplasty surgery requires a new umbilicus, Dr. Shapiro will make a new one for you, producing a long torso with an appropriately proportioned waistline, with the navel just in the right place. An incision is made for the new navel and is sutured into place.

Recovery
Recovering from an abdominoplasty surgery used to be a trying and painful ordeal; however, in the past four years, Dr. Shapiro has begun using a post-operative pain pump for patients to maintain their pain during recovery. The pump is far more effective in delivering pain relief than traditional oral pain killers and makes for a much more comfortable recovery period. The pump is used during the first week after surgery, which is the most critical period of recovery for most aesthetic surgeries. Drains and pain pump catheters are removed 7-10 days after surgery with patients returning to work within 2-3 weeks after surgery.