Scars after abdominoplasty
Patients often post in forums about scars after a tummy tuck, about the T incision(note: which is completely avoidable) or whether the scar is too high.
There may also be after pictures of tummy tucks circulating on the web, which do not show good testimonials. In my experience, these are results that do not necessarily look like this.
Comparison – left result Dr. Scholz’s method after 1 month
Let me therefore briefly explain the problem of scars and microsurgical suturing.
The general problem with invasive plastic surgery is that scars are unavoidable. There is no such thing as a surgical procedure with a scalpel “without scars“. What matters most to you as a patient, however, is where and how severe the scarring is. Also whether these can be seen later, e.g. when bathing. This is why experienced plastic surgery specialists pay great attention to this issue from the outset and use new and familiar methods to achieve the best results.
However, the shortcoming of scars is offset by far better long-term results, especially as alternative methods without surgery cannot keep up here. Tummy tightening without surgery using creams or non-invasive treatments remains a wish.
In contrast, with a very good abdominoplasty(synonyms: tummy tuck, abdominoplasty, abdominoplasty) you will experience a real and clearly visible before and after difference and a result that gives the entire torso a completely new three-dimensional shape from the armpit to the hips.
Scar Microsurgical suture
When it comes to the appearance of the scar itself, I believe that the better therapeutic approach is where the doctor uses the correct and optimal technique from the outset, before a scar even forms. So not only when the scar has already formed. This cannot necessarily be described as a new method, but rather as a refinement.
In my opinion, many pictures of scars after plastic surgery that you see online are based on insufficient experience or the use of the wrong methods (see above right).
According to the motto prevention is better than aftercare, I have spent many years improving the techniques that lead to a primary optimal scar. The procedure without a scar is not possible, but as a specialist I am looking for a barely visible solution.
Scars over time. Same as patient. Barely visible after 1 year.
Microsurgical techniques are of course used here, as well as the application of medication to the surrounding tissue during the operation if necessary.
In addition, the position or location of a scar is of course an extremely important factor. A scar should never lie across the lower abdomen during a tummy tuck. This is not an aesthetic solution and can often even lead to mechanical problems, such as the rubbing of waistbands and or belts on the scar (something that also negatively affects the appearance of the scar).
In the best case, the scar is far below, deeper and beyond the hairline of the pubic hair. The scar runs laterally in the crease between the leg and torso. If you want a scar to disappear as inconspicuously as possible, we plastic surgeons place the scars either in a fold (e.g. eyelid fold for blepharoplasty) or on the border between two aesthetic subunits.
In the abdominoplasty example, the torso is one sub-unit and the leg is the other sub-unit. In this respect, these scars are not visible even in the smallest bikini.
Overall, the interplay of precision, microsurgical sutures and the correct positioning of incisions (and scars) is what consistently achieves better results and makes the patient feel comfortable.
Scar cream
Today it is easy to think that scar creams will solve the problem of a visible scar after the operation, “smoothing” the skin structures and making the scar appear as fine as possible. There are countless creams and products available all over the world that aim to improve the appearance of surgical scars.
Unfortunately, the desired results do not materialize for the most part and doctors in aesthetic medicine in particular dream and hope for a miracle product to achieve the best results.
I don’t want to disappoint you, but many scar creams will not convince you or me as a specialist. That’s why I choose the best system or best alternative for wound healing before the procedure.
For this reason, my personal approach to a scar that is as inconspicuous as possible is on a different level, which is more controllable by me as a surgeon than the hope of a later superficial treatment with scar cream.
Wound healing
Wound healing is a process that takes at least one year. No matter where on the human body. Scars are red, broad and raised at the beginning. It usually takes a year for these scars to heal completely, leaving only the finest white lines.
For this reason, I strive to be able to take my patients by the hand for at least this period of time in order to be able to exert a positive influence on scarring at any time without the need for a new operation on the scar. Once the wound healing process is complete, the scars no longer change.
Conclusion
A tummy tuck without surgery with a perfect bikini figure is a wish that alternative methods can very rarely fulfill.
An abdominoplasty using microsurgical sutures and the correct placement of the scar in the hands of an experienced surgeon achieves reliable and far better long-term results.
You certainly have a number of questions (or even more so now) that should be answered before a tummy tuck.
These decisions will be part of your life for many decades to come and it is therefore important that you are well informed and only put yourself in the hands of a plastic and aesthetic surgeon in whom you have complete confidence.
