Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)

Surgical abdominoplasty to remove excess abdominal skin, repair rectus diastasis (muscle separation), and tighten the abdominal wall. Techniques include mini abdominoplasty (limited resection below the navel), modified (intermediate), and classical (full resection with navel repositioning). The On-Q local anesthesia delivery system provides four days of post-operative pain control. Duration approximately three hours.

Abdominoplasty at Dr. Kolker's practice addresses the three distinct components of abdominal laxity that persist after pregnancy or significant weight loss: skin and subcutaneous fat excess, rectus diastasis (midline separation of the paired abdominal rectus muscles that causes the central abdominal bulge), and overall skin quality and contour. Dr. Kolker selects among three abdominoplasty variants based on the location and extent of tissue excess. The mini abdominoplasty is designed for patients whose concerns are confined to the lower abdomen below the navel — a shorter horizontal incision allows excision of the lower skin panel without repositioning the navel, limiting scar length and recovery. The modified abdominoplasty extends the resection and muscle plication above the navel while still minimising the length of the horizontal scar. The classical abdominoplasty excises the full lower and mid-abdominal skin panel down to the pubic area, repositioning the navel through a new opening in the tightened skin — the most extensive form that achieves maximum contour improvement when skin excess spans the full abdomen. Rectus diastasis is repaired in all classical and modified cases by placing permanent sutures to approximate the medial edges of the rectus muscle sheaths back toward the midline, restoring the abdominal wall's mechanical function and reducing the central bulge that no amount of exercise can correct once the fascia has separated. Lipoabdominoplasty combines planned liposuction of the flanks, upper abdomen, and thighs with the abdominoplasty in a single session, using vascular-safe planning to avoid compromising the skin flap's blood supply. Post-operative pain management uses the On-Q pump — a continuous-infusion local anesthetic delivery system implanted along the repair site, providing four days of targeted pain control that substantially reduces reliance on systemic opioids and is associated with faster ambulation and improved recovery comfort.