6/22/06
According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the number of body-contouring procedures performed on postbariatric-surgery patients increased 22% from 2004 to 2005. In the June issue of Plastic Reconstructive Surgery, Berish Strauch, MD, chairman of the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at Montefiore Medical Center in Bronx, NY, describes how improved midbody lift contouring techniques trim away the massive amounts of excess skin in the postbariatric patients.
“We trim excess skin from the stomach, thighs, and buttocks in one operation, rotating the patient carefully on the operating table during the surgery,” says Strauch. “At a later date, we perform plastic surgery on other areas of the body. This staged approach improves the patients’ quality of life, has wonderful esthetic results and has proven to be safe and effective.”
Strauch describes 75 midbody lift operations in the article.
According to Strauch, circumferential abdominoplasty is more extensive than a standard tummy tuck, and involves additional operating-room time, more blood loss, and increased recovery time. After recovery, typically 3 months later, additional body-contouring procedures are considered, such as brachioplasty and breast, thigh, face, neck, and back lifts.
Strauch says each of these procedures requires special techniques for formerly obese patients and notes that there has been a low incidence of complications.
“Only one patient has experienced deep vein clotting, and there have not been any cases of pulmonary emboli or seroma,” says Strauch.
[www.newswise.com, June 21, 2006]
