Before every tummy tuck, proper preoperative planning is essential to ensure safety, precision, and patient satisfaction. This section covers key considerations such as BMI guidelines, risk reduction, surgical goals, and how patient-specific anatomy impacts the procedure plan.
Bariatric surgery and recent advances in weight loss medications have increased the patient population requesting surgical rejuvenation of their abdomen. In addition, pregnancy and weight loss by means of diet are also contributing to an increased demand for body rejuvenation.
Patients seeking abdominoplasty present with 3 issues to be addressed: Skin, muscle and fat. Skin excess can be limited to below the umbilicus or present below and above the umbilicus. This skin laxity will dictate the position and orientation of the scars, the need or not for an umbilical transposition, and the extent of dissection. Muscle separation and abdominal wall laxity are treated with plication of the muscles and fat deposits are treated with liposuction.
Body Mass Index (BMI) which relates weight to height is one of the most used parameters for preoperative planning. With BMI higher than 30, the complication rate and rate of dissatisfaction increase substantially, and patients are instructed to lose weight before the procedure and be closer to their goal weight. Abdominoplasty patients should be low risk healthy patients.
Smoking and oral contraception should be discontinued at least 4 weeks in advance.
Weight loss medications that slow down the gastric motility and emptying should be discontinued 1 week before surgery.
