Weight loss surgery before and after photos often show outstanding results. These results are typically the byproduct of a lot of hard work, sweat and tears — not to mention time, money, and dedication.
But the truth is, these weight loss surgery patients often still have a long way to go to achieve their dream body. After all, anyone who’s had surgery for weight loss knows that that’s just step one.
Next comes surgery after weight loss — plastic surgery, that is.
Up ahead, we take a deeper look at how plastic surgery can help after weight loss surgery. Most of the time, loose skin, unwanted folds, and small pockets of stubborn fat can all be taken care of with body contouring performed by an experienced board certified plastic surgeon.
Why Is Plastic Surgery Necessary After Weight Loss Surgery?
Whether you’ve had gastric bypass surgery, gastric sleeve surgery, or any other type of bariatric surgery, nearly all patients will end up with loose skin. How much excess skin you have will depend on what your highest body weight was, how quickly you were losing weight after surgery, your natural skin elasticity, your muscle mass, your age (those at a young age tend to have less loose skin), and a few other factors.
Ultimately, patients who undergo a gastric bypass procedure or gastric sleeve procedure will have more excess skin when compared with patients who forgo the gastric bypass or sleeve procedures and choose diet and exercise for weight loss and more energy. This is simply because weight loss surgery typically makes you lose weight quickly — sometimes in less than a year. Of course, to keep it off for their entire life and ensure a healthier future, patients need to lead a healthy lifestyle, avoid fast food, exercise, etc.
While plastic surgery is not absolutely necessary to take care of loose skin, it is often a part of patients’ weight loss journey and success stories. That’s because loose skin can be a huge problem.
It can cause chaffing, rashes, general discomfort, pain, embarrassment, frustration, and even depression. It’s tough to find properly fitting clothing, more difficult to exercise, and even hard to sleep with.
How Plastic Surgery Can Help Weight Loss Surgery Patients
The following body contouring procedures can be used after weight loss surgery to reduce excess skin and sculpt the body.
Tummy Tuck
Look at any before and after weight loss surgery pictures, and you’ll see that loose skin often hangs over the belly post-weight loss. A tummy tuck reshapes the abdomen by removing this loose skin, tissue, and excess fat.
Upper Body Lift
An upper body lift recontours and removes excess skin, fat, and tissue from around the upper abdomen, upper back, breasts, and sometimes arms.
Lower Body Lift
A lower body lift includes a tummy tuck and thigh lift to remove excess skin, fat, and tissue from around the bottom half of the body — namely, the trunk, buttocks, and thighs.
Arm Lift
An arm lift can get rid of excess skin and fat on the arms after weight loss.
Thigh Lift
Before and after weight loss surgery, the thighs can look very different — with far more sagging skin post-weight loss. A thigh lift can get rid of excess skin and fat around the thighs at this time.
Brazilian Butt Lift
You can recontour your body shape — and specifically your buttocks and thighs — by adding body fat taken from elsewhere (usually your abdomen) to these areas.
Face and Neck Lift
After significant weight loss, the face may appear older and gaunt without extra fat. You’ll also see this in many weight loss surgery before and after pictures. A face and/or neck lift can help tighten the skin and give you a more youthful look.
Breast Augmentation
Volume loss is common in the breasts after weight loss. Breast augmentation can be performed with saline or silicone implants to improve and reshape your breast size.
Breast Lift
Breasts often become “deflated” after weight loss. A lift uses the patient’s own tissue, but lifts the breasts and makes them appear more youthful.
Breast Reduction
Some female patients are still unhappy with having overly large breasts after weight loss. Breast reduction surgery removes unwanted fat, tissue, and skin from the breasts.
Male Breast Reduction Surgery
Men may have loose breast skin after weight loss as well. Gynecomastia surgery can fix this issue.
FAQ: Plastic Surgery After Weight Loss Surgery
How much is body contouring surgery after weight loss?
Patients often want to know their loose skin surgery cost before even making their first appointment with a plastic surgeon. We recommend scheduling your consultation appointment first, and then your surgeon will be able to give you a quote after speaking with you and giving you a physical examination.
What does your BMI have to be for weight loss surgery?
Optimal BMI for weight loss surgery depends. For some providers, patients need to have a BMI of around 35. However, if you are at your highest weight and have a lower-than-35 BMI (body mass index), if you also have an obesity related illness (such as high blood pressure), you may be able to qualify for a sleeve gastrectomy, duodenal switch, or similar weight loss surgery. Talk to your primary care doctor to learn more.
Also note that after your total weight loss, skin removal surgery with a plastic surgeon comes with a different set of requirements.
Request a Consultation with Dr. Schulman
Plastic surgery after weight loss surgery can be a life changing experience for patients who have worked hard to drop weight.
If you are considering this route to weight loss or have already completed your journey and are now considering skin removal and body contouring surgery, call today to schedule a consultation appointment with board certified plastic surgeon Dr. Matthew Schulman.
References
https://www.plasticsurgery.org/news/blog/is-plastic-surgery-after-weight-loss-a-2022-trend
