Mini Tummy Tuck

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A mini tummy tuck is a very abbreviated version of a full tummy tuck. It is performed most commonly on women but also on men to tighten the skin of the lower abdomen, i.e. below the belly button. There is little or no effect on the skin above the belly button. That is the big difference between a mini tummy tuck and a full tummy tuck. A mini tummy tuck removes a small amount of skin and fat from the lower abdomen, tightening this area. A full tummy tuck typically removes all of the skin and fat below your belly button, down to your pubic hair. Therefore a full tummy tuck requires one to have some laxity of the skin of the upper abdomen, which is then pulled down to the pubic hair line and sewn back together. In either case, the only scar will be at the level of your pubic hair line. I always try to keep this scar as low as possible, so it is easily hidden. Mini tummy tuck scars are typically shorter than full tummy tuck scars. In either case, the scars are much more easily hidden under clothing, (including even the skimpiest bikini or lingerie) than is the excess skin and fat.

Mini Tummy Tuck

Mini Tummy Tuck

Another benefit of a tummy tuck is that this gives me the ability to tighten the abdominal muscles if needed. This is very common for women after pregnancy and helps to flatten the abdomen and slim the waistline.

Women come to my office all the time and tell me that their friends and husbands tell them to just go exercise or diet to correct the wrinkled, drooping or stretched marked skin of their belly. The fact is that there is no way for you to tighten your own skin! You can do a several hundred sit-ups or crunches per day and exercise all you want (and hopefully you do to maintain good health and muscle tone) but there is no way to exercise your skin. You can tone your muscles which are deep under your skin, and that is good, but there is no way to tone or tighten your own skin. Nor can you exercise or burn off fat from any one specific area. When you exercise your muscles, they draw their nutrients form the blood vessels that feed them which in turn draws nutrients and energy from your entire body, not the fat in the area of the muscle that you are exercising. So, if you have loose skin of your abdomen, a tummy tuck can tighten it for you and at the same time remove the excess fat in this region. If your skin is tight and smooth but you have excess fat, then you don't need a tummy tuck. Liposuction would be the best way to flatten your belly.