Arm Lift
The location of the incision for brachioplasty (arm lift) is most commonly placed along the inner aspect of the arm, extending from the axilla (arm pit) to the elbow, so that when short sleeves are worn and the arms are by your side the incisions won’t be visible. Some surgeons place the incision along the posterior aspect of the arm, however the incision will be noticeable from behind.
Breast Surgery
After massive weight loss, the breasts change shape and breast surgery requests in these patients vary. Some patients maintain very large breasts and may benefit from a breast reduction. Others may notice that their breasts sag and do not want a reduction in volume. These patients can benefit from a breast lift (mastopexy). If the patient wants more volume, then they can have breast augmentation (implants) performed as well. Still, there are some patients that request breast augmentation and do not need a lift.
Tummy Tuck
Some massive weight loss patients can achieve a good contour from an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) alone. This is more common in a younger patient with good skin elasticity and also in a patient that did not have to lose a lot of weight to begin. On the other hand, most patients will have laxity of the abdominal tissues that will extend to their flanks as well as their buttocks. A circumferential abdominoplasty improves the contour of all these regions.
Gynecomastia
Gynecomastia surgery is individualized for each patient. Some patients do very well with liposuction alone. Some patients require an additional excision of tissue underneath the nipple. The tissue may be more fibrous and as a result is not adequately removed by liposuction. This can be accomplished with a small incision along the border of the areola and chest skin and usually heals very well. Still there are other patients who have significant skin redundancy and need a reduction with some skin removal.
Lower Body Lift
When a patient has excess skin and subcutaneous tissue of the thighs and buttocks, a lower body lift is performed to remove this excess tissue and improve the contour of the lateral thighs and buttocks. Although the patient may get some improvement of the lateral thighs as an added benefit from a circumferential abdominoplasty, the lateral thighs will be markedly improved with the lower body lift.
Upper Body Lift
The goal of the UBL is to remove the excess soft tissue and skin of the upper back, including the lateral, upper, and mid back rolls. The incision pattern is often designed for women to hide the resulting scar in the bra line as best as possible. For men it is in a similar location as for women. The incision is often extended into the lateral chest along the lower lateral chest crease or in the previously treated incision pattern used for a breast reduction or gynecomastia surgery. The procedure takes two to three hours and patients need one to two weeks to recuperate.