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Another benefit many patients seek out in their desire for a tummy tuck is eliminating upper belly stretch marks. Eliminating these stretch marks with a tummy tuck is only achieved by a full tummy tuck.
A mini tummy tuck can only tighten and eliminate the lower belly stretch marks because the umbilical stalk acts as a fixed pillar. Even though you’re tightening the lower belly and eliminating the lower belly stretch marks, it doesn’t transfer to the upper belly.
To justify the full tummy tuck, it is important to know and understand why the full tummy tuck can eliminate upper belly stretch marks as well.
A full tummy tuck, because the belly button (umbilical) stalk is removed, allows the surgeon to eliminate the lower and the upper belly stretch marks. A full tummy tuck is recommended when belly stretch marks extend above the lower belly to the upper belly.
The area surrounding the belly button is typically prone to stretch marks. With moderate to severe pain, the belly button stretches, which results in stretch marks where the belly button is.
Board-certified plastic surgeon Our Surgical Team shares that he can maximize the amount of skin removal by bending the patient intraoperatively, thus eliminating upper belly stretch marks with a tummy tuck. If you have to remove any more stretch marks than that, there is a technique to make your cut slightly higher to allow so to happen.
A slightly higher cut will allow the extension to the middle-upper abdomen, although that compromises having an incision line a little higher than ideal. In that case, your surgeon can undermine the skin flap to maximize the amount of skin you can remove.
Either route, a tummy tuck should accentuate your figure and should be seamless. We recommend always doing your research to find an experienced board-certified plastic surgeon that specializes in tummy tucks and body contouring, like Our Surgical Team, in Newport Beach, CA.
