Tummy tuck patients continue to lose weight years after surgery

Tummy tuck patients continue to lose weight years after surgery

Most patients who undergo “tummy tuck” surgery (tummy tuck) to further shed excess skin and tissue after weight loss in the months and years after surgery, suggests a follow-up study in the July issue ofPlastic and Reconstructive Surgery®,The official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPs). The journal is published in Wolters Kluwer's Lippincott portfolio.

“We found that patients not only maintained their weight loss after abdominoplasty, but on average they also lost up to ten pounds over time - even up to ten pounds“Comments Senior Author John YS Kim, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago.”This postoperative weight loss appears to be greater [BMI]. “

Continued weight loss up to five years after the tummy tuck

Abdominal heminoplasty is a cosmetic surgical procedure to improve the appearance of the abdomen. In 2023, ASPS member surgeons performed more than 170,000 abdominal loads, according to ASPS statistics. Many of these procedures are performed on patients experiencing massive weight loss that leaves them with excess, sagging skin.

Plastic surgeons have observed that patients can continue to lose weight after abdominoplasty. However, there is little research evidence on the topic, including whether the abdominoplasty procedure itself contributes to long-term weight loss.

Dr. Kim and colleagues conducted a study to assess body weight changes in 188 patients who underwent abdominoplasty between 2018 and 2022. Ninety-seven percent of patients were women. The average preoperative weight was approximately 168 pounds with a BMI of 27.7. Most patients underwent ligation or another procedure to remove excess fat (lipectomy) at the same time as abdominal hemoplasty. Body weight trends were assessed up to five years after surgery.

The results showed further weight loss after abdominoplasty. After three to six months, average weight loss was between five and six pounds, with BMI decreasing about three percent. From one to four years, weight loss was about five pounds for a BMI reduction of about two percent. By five years (in a limited number of patients), the average weight loss was almost ten pounds, with BMI decreasing by more than five percent.

“Almost constant negative change in body weight” after abdominoplasty

Overall, approximately 60% of patients lost weight during follow-up. Further analysis found a “nearly constant negative change in body weight that did not change significantly over time,” the researchers wrote.

After adjusting for other factors, continued weight loss was more likely in older patients, those who had undergone liposuction/lipectomy, and those who had never smoked. Weight loss was greater in patients with higher body weight and BMI before surgery and for a small number of patients using the newer semaglutide for weight loss.

The study adds new evidence that "weight loss after abdominoplasty is a quantifiable phenomenon and that patients who undergo abdominoplasty continue to lose significant weight up to five years after surgery," the researchers write. They note some important limitations to their study, including different follow-up times and potential confounding factors.

The study cannot definitively explain why patients continue to lose weight after surgery. Dr. However, Kim and co-authors write, "We found that patients who were able to achieve weight loss following their abdominoplasty were successful in developing healthy habits focused on diet and exercise." They highlight the need for an “evidence-based platform” to assess weight changes after abdominoplasty and identify factors associated with long-term weight loss.

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