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Body Contouring After Bariatric Surgery Coastal Obesity Center performs body contouring for patients who
have lost large amounts of weight after bariatric surgery. If
you have recently had bariatric surgery and now need to have excess skin removed,
contact our office today to schedule a body contouring
consultation.
What is Bariatric Surgery?
According to the National Institute of Diabetes & Digestive &
Kidney Diseases, nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults are
overweight, and nearly one-third are obese. Many people struggle
with their weight their whole lives, trying diet after diet with
no success. But there is a surgical solution to morbid obesity –
bariatric surgery. Bariatric surgery helps obese patients lose
extreme amounts of weight, helping them lead an active, healthy
lifestyle that was previously prevented by their weight.
Bariatric surgery is not intended for people who are just
slightly overweight. In general, you must be morbidly obese in
order to qualify for bariatric surgery. Morbidly obese is
defined as being overweight by 100 pounds (men) or 80 pounds
(women) with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 40 or over. It is also
important to understand that bariatric surgery is not performed
with the main goal of reaching an ideal weight – the real
advantage of bariatric surgery is the improvement of the
patient’s well-being and future health. Some obesity-related
medical conditions can be prevented, improved, and cured with
bariatric surgery, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease,
cancer, arthritis, hypertension, infertility, liver disease, low
back pain, sleep apnea, and stroke.
If you want to learn more about the benefits of bariatric
surgery, contact the Coast Obesity Center in
Jacksonville, Florida today.
Body Contouring Procedures After Bariatric Surgery
You’ve lost all of that weight – now what?
Plastic surgery after weight loss has become extremely popular.
The simple truth is, it’s not a matter of wanting surgery – most
people need it after significant weight loss. Skin becomes
severely loose and has no tone after you lose more than 50
pounds in a short period of time. As a result, the body often
looks worse than it did with the weight. During consultations
for bariatric surgery Coastal Obesity Center
often hears patients say that they look in the mirror and just
can’t bear the sight of all of that extra skin because they
still see themselves as fat. Sometimes it is so bad that
patients express the wish that they had not lost the weight in
the first place.
Coastal Obesity Center encounters these problems every
day. He regularly performs plastic surgery on people who have
lost a significant amount of weight. Plastic surgery following
bariatric surgery and significant weight loss is a very
specialized part of plastic surgery that requires years of
experience. New techniques in plastic surgery make it possible
to perform skin reduction surgery on virtually any part of the
body. That means all of the extra skin on the belly, arms,
thighs, breasts, neck, buttocks, back, eyes, and face can be
removed. It is important to remember that the information here
is intended for general knowledge and not for specific patients.
As always, the best way to get specific information is to
schedule a consultation about bariatric surgery at Coastal
Obesity Center.
When are you ready for plastic surgery?
The first step in this process is to determine when you will be
ready for plastic surgery. Most people that have bariatric
surgery lose anywhere from five to 20 pounds a month during the
first six to eight months. Coastal Obesity Center feels that while you are
losing this much weight, it is not a good period to have surgery
because your body is in a breakdown phase, not a healing phase.
Therefore, when your weight loss is down to one to two pounds
per month, you are ready to have plastic surgery. Also, if you
have plastic surgery after bariatric surgery and you are still
losing a lot of weight, you may need to have it again.
What is the first step?
Your journey to having your skin fit your body begins with a
consultation with Coastal Obesity Center . At the consultation for bariatric
surgery, Coastal Obesity Center will explain
all of the procedures in detail including the benefits, risks,
and how it will best fit your needs. Also, Coastal Obesity
Center will help you decide on where to have the procedure done
on your body. To learn more about skin removal after bariatric
surgery, contact Coastal Obesity Center today.
What will insurance pay for?
This is a very difficult facet of skin reduction surgery. Our
team of doctors feels that this is not cosmetic surgery, but rather
reconstructive surgery that you absolutely need to prevent
rashes and to help you look more “normal.” The insurance
companies do not always understand your situation. One of our
nurses will take pictures of the various parts of you body and
submit a letter and your pictures to the insurance company. They
will then look at all of the information and make a decision as
to whether they will pay for the surgery. Unfortunately, the
trend is for insurance companies to pay less and less for this
type of surgery. Also, most
procedures are limited to outpatient (go home after surgery) despite operating
on more than one body part. We do have overnight support with nurses if
necessary. This is done quite safely through years of experience. If procedures
are requested that we do not feel are safe, we will limit procedures to maintain
safety as an outpatient. In rare situations, insurance may cover some portion of
the procedure which may allow an overnight stay. An example may be, the repair
of a hernia or a concurrent hysterectomy combined with an abdominoplasty which
is very popular if the indication is there.
What if insurance doesn’t pay for the skin reduction?
Both you and our team of doctors will receive a letter from the insurance
company that will discuss what they will and will not pay for.
Coast Obesity Center will sit down with you and discuss
the costs for any of the surgeries that will not be covered by
insurance. We will also explain any financing options you may
have. After that, you just let us know what you would like to
do, and we will schedule your surgery.
How much can you have done at one surgery?
Our team of doctors extensive experience makes it possible to have surgery
on more than one part of the body. This means that you could
have up to three regions of the body operated on at the same
time.
What do you do after your surgery is scheduled?
At this point, our team of doctors will meet with you again to discuss the
exact procedures you will be having, along with the risks and
benefits. You will have plenty of opportunities to ask any
questions you might have; we are concerned with your comfort and
want to make sure that all your needs are taken care of.
How long is the recovery?
Individual regions of the body, such as the belly and arms, have
a recovery of about one to two weeks. If you have several
regions of the body performed at the same time, the recovery
will be longer. For example, if you have three regions of the
body operated on, such as the belly, arms, and breasts, your
recovery would be about a month and a half.
What is involved in the operation?
If only one region of the body is operated on, it will be an
outpatient operation, meaning you will go home the same day. If
you have more than one region of the body operated on, you would
have to spend one to two days in the hospital to allow you to
heal and to be as pain free as possible.
What are the risks of the surgery?
With any surgery, there are some common risks such as infection,
bleeding, and blood clots. The chance of blood clots is rare,
and the chance of infection or bleeding is about 5 percent.
There are two risks specific to skin reduction surgery. The
first is that a small part of the incision can come apart. This
may sound horrible, but it is not a big problem. When this
happens, it will heal on its own. The second is a fluid
collection that would need to be drained in the office. There
are other risks that are specific to the individual that Dr.
Fee will discuss with you in detail during the consultation.
If you have excess skin due to weight loss from bariatric
surgery, Coastal Obesity Center plastic surgeon Dr. Fee can help you
look your best. Contact us today for a consultation!
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