Do I need muscle repair during tummy tuck? (Photos)

Thank you for your question!One of the best ways to determine whether you need muscle repair before surgery is through an ultrasound. This allows us to clearly see if there’s a diastasis (separation of the abdominal muscles) that would require plication.
Just by looking at photos, it’s not possible to know for sure. If there’s no diastasis, a tummy tuck focused on removing excess skin and improving laxity would still give you a smoother, firmer abdomen.

Thanks for your question. I can usually diagnose Diastasis recti on physical exam and that can determine if you will need muscle repair or not. Based on your pictures, it does not seem like you suffer from Diastasis recti. However, if you have had pregnancies and children, it can be common to have mild Diastasis recti. Furthermore, it seems as though you do not have a significant amount of skin laxity or loose skin, therefore you could also benefit from a mini tummy tuck.

Thanks for your question! Generally, I can tell upon physical exam. However, with a baby or two, there's often a little that can be tightened. Good luck!

While many patients benefit from a muscle repair with a tummy tuck, the muscle tightening is not needed in all situations. It is important to consider the physical exam as well as patient expectations. The final decision is a balance between these. Sometimes it is agreed that the decision will be made intraoperatively. From your photographs, it seems you may very well be one of the few patients that does not need a repair. This is definitely a nice benefit as far as less expected postoperative pain!

An exam can reveal if you have muscle separation. It's not recommended for all patients, but it is for most. The muscle wall can become lax from pregnancy, age, or weight fluctuation. Patients typically benefit from addressing this and since you are there during the tummy tuck it's the ideal time to correct it.

Hello. The surgeon can assess whether there is an unsealed muscle separation through a physical exam, history, and abdominal shape, although photographs alone are insufficient to confirm this. Confirmation is obtained through an in-person examination or ultrasound. If your abdomen appears firm and without a central bulge, you probably don't need muscle repair. You can contact us at 829-554-6062 to determine whether you need it.

Hi! In almost 99% of the cases of abdominoplasties at least in my experience we do muscle plications (muscle repair). The 1% of cases where I don't perform muscle repair are generally male patients who lost weight and have a strong core. In your situation my recommendation would be doing a tummy tuck with plications of the abdominal wall to strengthen the core and give more support for the long term and 360 lipo for more definition of the abdomen and narrowing the waistline. Hope this helped with your decision!