Tummy Tuck vs. Liposuction: Which Should I Choose?
It isn’t always easy to get the proportional, shapely body type you want with fat in the “right” areas, especially if genetics or hormones make you prone to carrying most of your fat around the belly area. Alternatively, loose and hanging skin or separated stomach muscles might be making you feel less confident about showing off your abdomen, even if you don’t have much fat. Exercise, topical products, and other home remedies simply can’t reliably fix these problems, even if they may improve your appearance slightly. That’s why we recommend body-contouring procedures like liposuction or a tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) from our Philadelphia-area practice so that you can finally get the look you want.
Even though both elective procedures can give you a flatter, slimmer, and more aesthetically pleasing abdominal area, tummy tucks and liposuction are not the same thing. Wondering what the key similarities and differences are between these two surgical procedures? We’ve put together some basic insights into each of these treatments to give patients a better understanding of their respective advantages.
Who is a Tummy Tuck Right For?
A tummy tuck can involve removing unwanted fat on the stomach, but its primary purpose is removing excess skin and tightening the tissues so that they don’t sag, as well as repairing weakened or stretched-out abdominal muscles as necessary. A tummy tuck is a more involved operation compared to liposuction, and it can involve a longer recovery period.
Who is Liposuction Right For?
Liposuction can be used on most areas of the body where you have excess fat that you can’t lose through standard exercise and dietary changes—such as the buttocks, love handles, upper arms, stomach, hips, back, and thighs. The procedure involves surgically removing deposits of fat cells from below the skin in the targeted areas. While the skin can retract to sit more firmly over areas where volume has been reduced, liposuction is only for fat reduction, so patients whose skin is less elastic may find that there is some sagging after.
Liposuction and tummy tucks are often combined, as they complement each other well.
The best way of knowing whether a procedure is right for you is to set up a consultation with a knowledgeable surgeon who will discuss your goals with you. If you’re interested in having liposuction or an abdominoplasty, contact Cross Medical Group by calling us at (215) 561-9100 or filling out a contact form to request a consultation.
