Q&A with Consultant Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon, Simon Mackey
Q. I lost a lot of weight last year, and although I feel great, I’ve been left with a lot of excess skin, which I hate. I really want to show off my hard work on holiday this year, but what will the procedure involve, and how long is the downtime afterwards?
A. Firstly, can I congratulate you on losing the weight, as the long-term benefits of this to your health are invaluable. Having been left with a lot of excess skin, the only way to deal with this is to remove it. It is not possible to tighten the skin significantly using non-surgical or minimal access techniques.
Depending on how much weight has been lost, and the pattern and amount of excess skin, any one of a number of different abdominoplasty techniques may be most appropriate for you. These include mini abdominoplasty, full abdominoplasty, massive weight loss abdominoplasty, ‘Fleur-de-Lis’ abdominoplasty or circumferential body-lift procedures. These procedures can be combined with others such as liposuction, to obtain the best results.
Full recovery can take six to twelve weeks, depending on the procedure that best suits your body shape. It’s best to give yourself plenty of time to recover before your holiday so that you no longer require dressings or support garments.
