Is an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) right for me?
Sometimes the skin of the abdomen does not shrink back after pregnancy or after losing a lot of weight. You are most likely to benefit from an abdominoplasty if you are self-conscious about what your abdomen looks like. Abdominoplasty is not appropriate for people who are over weight or as an attempt to lose weight.

Your Nuffield Health surgeon will carry out a detailed assessment before deciding if tummy tuck surgery is suitable for you. So that you know exactly what to expect from the results of this surgery, we encourage you to share your expectations with your consultant as early as possible. This should help you to establish a clear indication of what is realistically achievable with this procedure.

To give yourself time to reach the right decision, you should make sure you leave at least two weeks between your consultation and surgery.

Your surgeon may use one of several surgical techniques:
This operation is performed under a general anaesthetic and usually takes between 2 - 5 hours.

Full abdominoplasty - is suitable if you have a lot of excess skin. Your surgeon will make a curved cut from one hip to the other. They will remove any excess skin and fat. Your surgeon will then cut under the skin above your umbilicus (belly button), pulling it downwards and tightening it. Sometimes they will need to reconstruct your umbilicus and tighten the muscles of the abdominal wall
Mini abdominoplasty - is suitable if you only have a little excess skin. Your surgeon will only need to make a small cut just above the pubic area to remove the excess skin
Endoscopic abdominoplasty - is suitable if you only need to have the muscles of your abdominal wall tightened. Your surgeon will make small cuts and use special surgical instruments to tighten the muscles.