Home / Procedures / Tummy Tuck
Procedure guide
A tummy tuck, or abdominoplasty, removes excess skin and fat from the abdomen and in most cases repairs weakened or separated abdominal muscles. ASPS member surgeons performed 171,064 tummy tucks in 2024, third by count on the ASPS list of cosmetic operations.
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The operation
A full tummy tuck uses a horizontal incision between the pubic hairline and the navel. The surgeon lifts the abdominal skin, repairs the muscles, pulls the upper skin down, trims the excess and brings the navel out through a new opening.
Muscle repair means plication: the front sheath of the rectus muscles is folded and stitched to close the gap between them. Nahas classified the muscle-layer problems into four types, A to D, in 88 patients, each with its own repair.
Variants differ in incision length and in how much skin is lifted: mini, extended, high-lateral-tension, fleur-de-lis, reverse and circumferential. Lipoabdominoplasty adds liposuction and limits the lifting of skin to protect its blood supply.
ASPS lists the common causes of a loose or protruding abdomen as aging, heredity, pregnancy, prior surgery and large weight changes. Good candidates are healthy, at a stable weight and do not smoke.
What it changes
What it does not change
The guide
Full, mini, extended, fleur-de-lis, lipoabdominoplasty, reverse and circumferential: what each one removes.
OpenThe layers of the abdominal wall and the ones a tummy tuck removes or tightens.
OpenFrom the first apron removal in 1890 to drain-free and lipoabdominoplasty methods.
OpenWeek by week after surgery, the risks in numbers and how long results last.
OpenAnswers to the questions patients ask most, with sources.
OpenFlorida tummy tuck surgeons ranked, with their dossiers.
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