
3 Main benefits of the hourglass tummy tuck
3 Main benefits of the hourglass tummy tuck
Introduction
The tummy tuck is also known under the medical term of abdominoplasty and is a plastic surgery procedure that will remove the excess of skin and fat tissue on the abdominal wall, which is an apron-like appearance of the tummy that can’t be improved with diets or physical exercises.
Generally speaking, a responsible plastic surgeon will advise patients to try less invasive methods to correct the appearance of the body before resorting to plastic surgery, but when it comes to a protruding belly or the skin folds present on the inferior part of the abdomen, often there are no other solutions aside from the tummy tuck. Not even other plastic surgery procedures that are less invasive such as liposuction can’t substitute for abdominoplasty.
There are different types of tummy tucks that can be performed nowadays, depending on the physical characteristics of the patient and the goals to achieve with the procedure. Among these tummy tuck procedures, there is one performed with the aim of improving the overall appearance of the body and not just the tummy. This is the hourglass tummy tuck, and in this article, we will discuss the procedure and three main benefits associated with it.
The tummy tuck
Abdominoplasty makes the tummy look flat by firming the loose muscles of the abdominal wall and eliminating the excess skin tissue. It is important to keep in mind that the tummy tuck is a major procedure and the patient should be fully aware of all the details entailing it before scheduling the procedure. Also, it is crucial to mention that the tummy tuck is a body contouring procedure and not a weight loss method.
Good patients for the tummy tuck are those who are confronted with an excess of skin tissue on the abdominal wall. Due to different causes, the tummy starts becoming saggy, sometimes partially or completely covering the pubic area. Candidates for the tummy tuck are women who had one or multiple pregnancies and are left with loose and weak abdominal muscles, patients of bariatric surgery, or people affected by the natural aging process.
The main recommendation for patients who want to undergo the tummy tuck is to have kept a stable weight for at least six to eight months and to have a weight that is closer to normal because weight fluctuations are to be avoided after the procedure. Moreover, the plastic surgeon will also advise you to schedule the procedure once you are done having children as a new pregnancy can alter the results achieved.
The hourglass tummy tuck
The hourglass tummy tuck is different from the traditional tummy tuck. The hourglass tummy tuck allows for the patient to get a firm and flat abdomen, but also a smaller waist and a more curvaceous body.
When the traditional tummy tuck is performed, the plastic surgeon will make an incision on the lower part of the abdomen on the suprapubic area and detach the skin from the muscles. The muscles are sutured to be brought closer together, and a potential umbilical hernia is corrected. The skin and underlying fat tissue are then rearranged on the muscles and tension is created to make the abdomen firmer. The excess of skin is eliminated and the incision is sutured. In some cases, the plastic surgeon might need to reposition the navel to a correct anatomical position, and this results in an additional incision that has a circular shape around the belly button.
When the hourglass tummy tuck is performed, the plastic surgeon will perform all the stages of the traditional tummy tuck, but he will start the procedure with liposuction on the areas of the body with an excess of fat, usually the abdomen and the flanks. Liposuction reduces the thickness of the fat tissue on the tummy, hence making the abdominal circumference smaller. This is something that can’t be achieved in the absence of liposuction.
After the plastic surgeon removes all the excess fat tissue from the abdomen and the flanks, the tummy tuck is performed. Meanwhile, the fat that was collected with liposuction is processed, and in the final stage of the procedure, this fat is transferred to the hips. Fat grafting to the hips is an innovative solution to create the hourglass silhouette and improve the results achieved with the traditional tummy tuck.
Main benefits of the hourglass tummy tuck
- Reduces the waistline
The traditional tummy tuck only works on the skin tissue and muscles of the abdomen. This means that if the patient has adipose tissue on the flanks that make the waist barely contoured, the traditional tummy tuck won’t correct this issue. Many patients discover that after the traditional tummy tuck they are left with a square shape, and this is not very sexy or appealing. Liposuction is performed in the first stage of the hourglass tummy tuck procedure exactly with the purpose to create a definition and improve the contour of the waist. By eliminating the excess of fat deposits from the flanks, the patient can enjoy having a smaller, better-contoured waist. Moreover, liposuction is also performed on the abdominal wall. This means that after the procedure, the patient will also have a smaller circumference of the abdomen. This is especially visible when performed on patients with a considerable adipose tissue on the tummy.
- Sculpts the area with an excess of fat
When we talk about the tummy tuck, we often think of the whole midline area, even if the traditional procedure only deals with the front of the tummy and not the waist or the flanks. Getting a flat and firm tummy is a great achievement for most patients, but for patients who have adipose tissues that are difficult to address with exercise and diets, it is the hourglass tummy tuck that will deliver the best results possible. After the hourglass tummy tuck, the patient will notice that the body looks slimmer and more appealing without the surplus of fat around the midline.
- Creates the hourglass silhouette
The hourglass silhouette is the most sought-after body shape. If you look at your favorite celebrity, you might notice she has an hourglass shape, and this is one of the things that makes her so feminine and desirable. The hourglass body shape is characterized by similar proportions for the hips and shoulders and a waist that is smaller by at least 15-30% compared to the hips.
But how does the modern woman achieve the hourglass silhouette if she has narrow hips? You might think there is no solution for making the hips more alluring, but the hourglass tummy tuck takes care of this aspect as well. The hips get an increase in volume due to the fat transfer to the hips that is performed in the last step of the hourglass tummy tuck. So what we achieve with the hourglass tummy tuck is a better ratio between the waist and the hips. We reduce the dimensions of the waist and increase the dimensions of the hips for a more curvaceous appearance.
Choosing the right plastic surgeon for your hourglass tummy tuck
When considering plastic surgery to enhance the tummy or the overall appearance of the body, is important to choose an experienced, board-certified plastic surgeon. Moreover, when talking about procedures as complex and delicate as the hourglass tummy tuck, the need to get a talented and experienced plastic surgeon is even more obvious. To maximize the results achieved with this procedure, the plastic surgeon must have done it before, preferably many times on different patients. Ask for before and after pictures of former patients who had the same procedure you are interested in to get an idea about what results are to be expected after the hourglass tummy tuck.
Conclusion
The hourglass tummy tuck is a modern procedure performed to improve the appearance of the tummy and create the hourglass silhouette that is desired by many women nowadays. The procedure corrects some of the flaws that can be left behind by the traditional tummy tuck, especially when performed on patients who have an excess of adipose tissue on the tummy and flanks. The shape of the body after the traditional tummy tuck can be one of a square due to the adipose tissue on the flanks. When the hourglass tummy tuck is performed, the waist dimensions are reduced, the patient gets rid of fat from areas where it is unwanted, and gets more volume where it is needed, usually on the hips.