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Cosmetic Surgery After Weight Loss

Although successfully losing a considerable amount of weight is a celebratory achievement, excessive weight loss very often causes a significant excess of skin. If you have lost weight and now want to work on toning up that extra skin that’s been left behind, Regency can help.  

Cosmetic surgery to address excess skin

Although an individual who has gone through a huge weight loss has greatly improved their health, they usually have a new problem: a lot of extra skin that appears rippled and stretched. However, excess skin is treatable with cosmetic surgery such as abdominoplasty, a breast lift, an arm lift, a body lift, or a facelift. After all, you didn’t lose all that weight just to look saggy. 

Why does excess skin occur?

When a person shrinks their body, the skin is not always able to shrink along with it. The more weight you lost, the more extra skin you’ll have. This is because a lot of excess skin has been stretched around the tummy, breasts, arms, legs, and face—and that skin will have lost its elasticity. This causes the skin to droop, sag, and appear wrinkled and aged. 

What types of surgery can help?

Cosmetic surgeries that remove excess skin, tighten, tone, and lift will compliment your weight loss, and will help your clothes fit better. The areas of the body that are most often treated after weight loss include:

  • Abdomen (treated with a tummy tuck)
  • Buttocks/upper thighs (treated with a body lift)
  • Thighs (treated with a thigh lift)
  • Breasts (treated with a breast lift and/or augmentation)
  • Arms (treated with an arm lift)
  • Face/neck (treated with a facelift and/or neck lift)

Recovery

Cosmetic surgery to correct excess skin after weight loss is typically an outpatient procedure. Surgical dressings will be applied to the incisions, and drains may be placed to collect excess fluids. 

If you are given drains, you will be provided with detailed home care instructions on how to manage them. During the recovery period, you should avoid exercise and lifting anything over five pounds. You should take short, light walks a few times a day to help with circulation. Patients typically experience swelling and bruising for 2 to 3 weeks after surgery. 

Results

You will notice results almost immediately, but your final outcome may take up to two years to become fully apparent. These results will be very long-lasting as long as you maintain a stable weight and a generally healthy lifestyle.

Am I candidate?

The best results from cosmetic surgery after weight loss are achieved when the patient:

  • Has finished losing weight
  • Has had a stable weight for at least a year
  • Is in overall good health
  • Does not have any chronic medical conditions
  • Is maintaining a healthy lifestyle
  • Has realistic goals for what the surgery can accomplish

Why choose Regency Specialties?

Regency Specialties is a multi-specialty group delivering the very best treatments in dermatology, plastic surgery, hand surgery, breast oncology, reconstruction, and dermatopathology, all in one practice. This offers a convenient solution for our patients. We provide the highest level of care and availability, featuring the top specialists in Arizona. You will feel completely welcome from the moment you enter our door to your very last follow-up appointment. To learn more or schedule a consultation, please call 623-243-9077 or contact us online.

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