Comprehensive Post Weight Loss Surgery Options?
Massive weight loss achieved through diet, exercise, medical management or bariatric surgery is a great achievement. However, your next challenge might be what to do with all that leftover excess skin that can be unsightly, inconvenient under clothing, and can cause skin irritations and infections.
Dr Turner offers a range of body contouring surgical techniques used to target different parts of the body. Based on your unique needs, he will devise a treatment plan for you. Different types of body contouring procedures include:
- Conservative: Basic skin hygiene techniques, maintaining good diet and exercise and clothing options.
- Face: After substantial weight loss, you may notice a loss of volume in your face, leading to sagging skin and wrinkles. A Facelift tailored for weight loss patients can rejuvenate your facial features.
- Breasts: Weight loss can result in decreased breast volume and sagging. Breast lift surgery dedicated to weight loss patients can reshape the breasts and is often combined with a bra line or upper body lift procedure.
- Body: Excess skin around the abdomen is a common concern. Procedures like lower body lift or vertical abdominoplasty can remove this surplus skin, tighten the underlying muscles, and provide a flatter abdomen.
- Thighs: Loose skin on the thighs can cause physical discomfort and affect mobility. A Thigh Lift targets this area, removing excess skin and fat to create smoother thigh contour.
- Arms: Significant weight loss can lead to sagging skin on the upper arms. Brachioplasty, or arm lift surgery, eliminates this excess skin, resulting in toned and defined arms.
Surgical Weight Loss Procedures offered by Dr Turner?
Lower Body Lift
A lower body lift, also known as a belt lipectomy, is a comprehensive surgical procedure designed to remove excess skin and fat from the lower body. This surgery involves a circumferential incision around the waistline, allowing Dr Turner to address multiple areas simultaneously including the abdomen, waist, hips, pubic region, and buttocks. In addition to removing excess skin, liposuction is often performed to further enhance the body’s contours. The outcome is a more defined waistline and a smoother, tighter appearance of the lower body.
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Vertical (Fleur De Lis) Abdominoplasty
A Vertical Abdominoplasty, commonly known as a Fleur De Lis Abdominoplasty, is a surgical procedure designed to remove extensive excess skin and fat from the abdominal area. This technique is particularly beneficial for individuals who have undergone massive weight loss resulting in significant skin laxity both horizontally and vertically. The procedure involves two incisions—one horizontal along the lower abdomen and one vertical along the midline—forming an inverted “T” shape.
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Arm Lift – Brachioplasty
An Arm Lift, or Brachioplasty, is a surgical procedure that removes excess skin and fat from the upper arms to create a more toned and defined appearance. The surgery involves an incision running along the inside of the arm from the elbow to the armpit, and liposuction may be performed simultaneously to enhance contouring. When the incision extends down the chest wall, it is referred to as an extended brachioplasty.
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Thigh Lift
A Thigh Lift is aimed at removing excess skin and stubborn fat from the inner thighs after massive weight loss. In some cases, the procedure may be performed in two stages: initial liposuction to reduce thigh bulk, followed by a secondary surgery to remove excess skin, minimizing nerve and lymphatic injury. Thigh lifts have a higher revision rate due to the nature of loose skin involved. The resulting scars run vertically down the inside of the legs and are visible, this is an unavoidable aspect of the procedure.
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Upper Body Lift – Bra Strap Excision
An Upper Body Lift, or Bra Strap Excision, is a surgical procedure designed for individuals who have experienced significant weight loss resulting in loose folds of skin along the upper back. This surgery removes excess skin and fat in the upper back area, enhancing body contours and reducing sagging. It is rarely performed on its own and is often combined with breast reshaping procedures (mastopexy). By addressing both the upper back and breasts simultaneously.
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Breast Reshaping
Significant weight loss can lead to changes in breast volume and skin elasticity, resulting in sagging, deflated breast shape. Breast surgery after massive weight loss is aimed at restoring the breasts to a more proportionate and balanced appearance. Dr Turner offers breast lift (mastopexy), breast reduction and breast augmentation, or a combination of these procedures, depending on individual needs.
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Facelift
Significant weight loss can lead to excess skin and reduced elasticity in the facial area, resulting in sagging cheeks, jowls, and loose neck skin. A facelift is a surgical procedure designed to address these concerns by removing excess skin and tightening underlying facial muscles and tissues. Dr Turner offers personalized facelift options to enhance facial contours and restore a more defined appearance. By addressing the effects of weight loss on the face, patients can achieve a more balanced and refreshed look that complements their overall transformation after massive weight loss.
Considerations before undertaking Post Weight Loss Surgery
Managing Expectations
Visualising the outcome of post weight loss surgery can be challenging. To aid in managing expectations, Dr Turner shares photos with patients during the consultation to provide a clearer understanding of the potential results. However, it is important to understand that each individual has a different skin excess and residual body mass, and clinical photos only provide a general guide, and it certainly does not represent the final result for each patient.
Multiple consultations before the final surgery, therefore, are crucial in addressing any concerns and ensuring that patients are well-informed. Rushing into surgery is actively discouraged, emphasising the importance of taking the time needed for thorough consideration and discussion. This approach ensures that patients have a realistic understanding of the potential outcomes and are fully prepared for the transformative process ahead.
Body Mass Index (BMI)
Before considering post-weight loss surgery, it is recommended that individuals reach a stable weight and maintain it for at least six months. This stability allows the body to adjust, ensuring better surgical outcomes and minimizing potential complications.
Medical research and experience have shown that a higher (BMI increases the likelihood of postoperative wound infections and complications. While goal weights may vary among patients, a BMI of less than 30 is generally considered ideal for surgery. Those with a BMI between 30 to 35 face a higher risk of postoperative issues and should be aware of the potential challenges associated with higher BMI levels during surgical recovery.
Smoking and Vaping
Nicotine significantly increases the risk of wound complications after surgery, regardless of a patient’s BMI. Dr. Turner requires patients to stop smoking at least six weeks prior to undergoing post weight loss surgery. This cessation period helps improve the body’s healing capacity and reduces the likelihood of postoperative issues.
Patients must also abstain from smoking until all surgical wounds are fully healed. This policy applies to both traditional smoking and vaping. By adhering to this guideline, patients can enhance their recovery process and achieve better surgical outcomes, minimizing the risk of complications associated with nicotine use.
Scars
Discussing the placement and length of scars is a crucial part of any pre-surgery conversation for post weight loss procedures. Dr. Turner emphasizes that skin excision surgery inevitably leaves visible scars, and if concerns about scarring are significant, this type of surgery might not be the right choice. While scars from abdominoplasty and breast lifts are generally concealed by clothing, those from brachioplasty and thigh lift can be more highly noticeable depending on clothing choices.
Scars typically take more than 18 months to reduce in redness, making long-term scar management essential. Dr. Turner provides a comprehensive scar management plan to incorporate into daily routines, helping to minimize scarring over time. It’s important to understand that scars can occasionally become thick and raised, known as hypertrophic or keloid scars, which may require additional treatment.
Revision Surgery – Touch Ups
Revision or touch-up procedures are a normal and expected part of the skin excision process following post weight loss surgery. Dr. Turner emphasizes that due to the significant changes in body contours, initial surgeries may not address all aesthetic concerns in a single procedure. Minor asymmetries, residual skin laxity, scar migration or contour irregularities can occur, making additional adjustments beneficial for optimal results.
These revision procedures are typically less extensive than the initial surgery and aim to refine and enhance the overall outcome. Understanding that revisions are a common part of the journey helps set realistic expectations and contributes to higher patient satisfaction in the long term.
Multiple – Staged Procedures
Addressing all aesthetic concerns after massive weight loss often necessitates multiple staged procedures. Dr. Turner emphasizes that due to the extensive skin laxity affecting various areas—face, breasts, body, arms, and thighs—it is neither effective nor safe to correct all issues in a single surgery. Staging procedures six months apart allows the body ample time to heal between surgeries, reducing the risk of complications and enhancing overall results.
This approach enables each procedure to focus on specific areas, ensuring more precise corrections and optimal aesthetic outcomes. By spacing out surgeries, patients can also adjust to their changing bodies gradually, which can be beneficial for both physical recovery and emotional well-being. Understanding that a multistage plan is essential helps set realistic expectations, contributing to higher satisfaction and safety throughout the transformative journey.
