Tummy Tuck

A refined, natural contour tailored to your shape and lifestyle.

If your tummy no longer reflects how fit or healthy you feel, you are not alone. Pregnancy, weight changes, and natural ageing can stretch the skin and soft tissues of the abdomen in a way that exercise simply cannot fully reverse. A tummy tuck, medically called abdominoplasty, is designed to restore a firmer, smoother abdominal contour by removing excess skin, refining the waistline, and, when needed, repairing separated abdominal muscles.

Dr Kevin Haddad tailors tummy tuck surgery to the person, not a “one size fits all” template. The goal is a result that looks natural in real life, feels proportionate to your body, and holds up over time.

What a tummy tuck can improve

A tummy tuck can address several concerns at once:

• Loose or hanging skin on the lower abdomen (often after pregnancy or weight loss)
• Stretch marks located mainly on the skin that will be removed (commonly below the belly button)
• Abdominal muscle separation (rectus diastasis), which can create a rounded or “still pregnant” look even at a stable weight
• A softer waistline where skin laxity and tissue looseness blur the natural contour

For some patients, repairing rectus diastasis is not only aesthetic. Research on rectus diastasis repair reports improvements in core-related function, including back discomfort and quality of life in many studied patients, although individual outcomes vary and it is not a guaranteed “functional fix” for everyone.

Is it mainly skin, mainly fat, or both?

This is the key question in planning the right operation.

• If the main issue is fat, liposuction may be the better tool.
• If the main issue is skin laxity and muscle separation, a tummy tuck is usually required.
• If it is both, many surgeons use a combined strategy.

In modern abdominoplasty planning, combining liposuction with abdominoplasty can be done safely in selected patients using techniques that preserve blood supply to the abdominal skin. One well-known concept in the literature is lipoabdominoplasty, which uses more selective undermining (less lifting of the abdominal skin flap) to help preserve perforating vessels.

Types of tummy tuck

Dr Kevin Haddad will recommend the approach that matches your anatomy and your goals:

Mini tummy tuck

Best for concerns mainly below the belly button, with a smaller amount of excess skin and minimal muscle separation.

Full tummy tuck

The most common option when there is skin laxity above and below the belly button and/or clear muscle separation that needs repair.

Extended tummy tuck

Useful when laxity continues toward the hips and sides, often after significant weight loss.

What actually happens during the procedure

While every surgeon has their own nuances, a tummy tuck generally involves:

• A low incision positioned to sit under most underwear or swimwear
• Removal of excess skin and reshaping of the abdominal envelope
• Repair of rectus diastasis when indicated, by tightening the abdominal wall
• Repositioning of the belly button (in a full tummy tuck) in a natural-looking position
• Optional liposuction in selected areas to refine the waist and upper abdomen

A detail many patients care about is drains. Evidence suggests that using progressive tension sutures (a technique that secures tissue layers to reduce “dead space”) can reduce seroma rates and may allow some patients to avoid drains, depending on the surgical plan.

Safety

Every operation has risks, and a good consultation should include a clear discussion of them. In abdominoplasty, commonly reported complications include seroma, wound-healing issues, infection, and haematoma. More serious but rarer events can include venous thromboembolism (blood clots).

Because clot prevention matters in body contouring procedures, many plastic surgery teams use structured risk assessment and a prevention plan that may include early mobilisation, compression, and, for higher-risk patients, medication when appropriate.

During your consultation, Dr Kevin Haddad will review factors that influence risk and healing, such as smoking, prior scars, weight stability, medications, pregnancy history, and your individual goals.

Who is a good candidate?

You may be a good fit if you:

• Are at a stable, healthy weight (it is not a weight-loss surgery)
• Have excess skin, muscle separation, or both
• Have realistic expectations and understand scarring is part of the trade-off
• Can commit to a proper recovery period

If you plan future pregnancies, it is still possible to have a tummy tuck now, but many patients choose to wait because pregnancy can stretch the tissues again.