Anyone who has had successful Bariatric surgery knows the health benefits of having lost a significant amount of weight. But, one negative side effect of losing 100 pounds or more is the remaining layers of excess skin. The amount of loose, sagging, or stretched skin a person has after massive weight loss is as different from one person to another as are the reasons that people elect to have weight loss surgery.
Are You A Good Candidate for Skin Removal Surgery?
An analysis and examination by your Glendora General Surgeon can determine if you will be a good candidate for excess skin removal surgery. Some of the considerations will be:
- Are you currently in good health without having any potential medical situations that could be negatively affected by having skin removal surgery?
- Have you achieved your weight loss goal and been able to sustain the weight loss for at least 9 months to one year before considering skin removal surgery?
- Will you need more than one surgery to remove the maximum amount of sagging skin in different areas of your body?
- Will be you be able to devote the required amount of time, usually several weeks, to your recovery?
- Do you understand that some scars may be visible after certain surgical procedures?
What Are The Types of Excess Skin Removal Surgeries?
Your excess skin removal surgery will be tailored to address your personal area, or areas, of concern, especially when the sagging skin is the cause of bacterial infections within the excess folds or the inability to move normally without skin irritations. The three main body areas where excess skin removal procedures are performed after Bariatric weight loss surgery are:
- Upper Body Area: A full upper body area procedure involves the removal of excess skin and the tightening of remaining skin on the arms, across the back, across the front of the chest, and a breast tissue reduction and lifts for both men and women. Your personal upper body procedure may only target one specific body area.
- Midsection Body Area: The surgery to remove the excess, sagging skin that has formed an apron like appearance across the torso’s midsection and to tighten the remaining skin is called a Panniculectomy.
- Lower Body Area: A full lower body area procedure involves a buttocks lift, a thigh lift, and a tummy tuck for the removal of excess skin and the tightening of the remaining skin. Your personal lower body procedure may only need to target one specific body area.
Surgery and Recovery Details
Once your excess skin removal surgery has been determined, your surgeon will instruct you on how to prepare for the operation, what will happen during the operation, if your surgery will be performed as an out-patient operation or if you will need a short hospital stay before going home, what type of general anesthetic will be used to ensure you are asleep during the operation, what type of incisions will be made, what type of sutures will be used, and what any remaining scars may look like.
