Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty) Patient 12

Mommy Makeover: Breast Augmentation with Lift & Abdominoplasty

This 50-year-old mother of two came to our office in Frisco, Texas desiring body rejuvenation after pregnancy and the natural aging process. She complained of abdominal fullness despite maintaining an ideal weight and exercising. During consultation, she wound to have moderate abdominal muscle separation (diastasis recti), which left her with a persistent abdominal bulge.

To address this, she underwent an abdominoplasty which focused primarily on repairing her diastasis recti. During her surgery, the separated rectus abdominis muscles were repaired using a multi-vector plication. This reinforced her abdominal wall by tightening it vertically while additional vectors of plication were used to address fullness in the vertical vector. This technique restores core support, narrows the waistline, improves abdominal contour, and helps eliminate the persistent bulge caused by muscle separation rather than excess fat.

Because she had a relatively high-positioned umbilicus and only a moderate amount of excess lower abdominal skin, she was also an excellent candidate for an umbilical float procedure. Rather than creating a new incision around the belly button, the umbilicus was temporarily released from the abdominal wall, allowing the abdominal skin to be tightened before the belly button was reattached in a slightly lower position. In carefully selected patients, this technique can avoid a visible scar around the navel while achieving a smooth, natural abdominal contour.