Body Lift

Dr. Gardenier examining the front of a patient

Addressing Loose Skin After Weight Loss

Congratulations! Whether you’ve lost a significant amount of weight through a positive lifestyle change, such as a healthy diet and exercise, or through the use of surgical methods like gastric bypass or lap band, you’ve succeeded.

The pride you feel is deserved. However, there remains a problem. You still have a significant amount of loose skin below your breasts, above your belly button (the upper abdomen), and along your sides.

What Is a Body Lift?

If you have lost significant weight through diet and exercise, lap band, or gastric bypass surgery and are left with rolls or folds of excess skin, double-board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. Gardenier and the team at Plastic Surgery Center in Portland, Maine, are here to help. Using a procedure called corset trunkplasty, or corset lift, they can create a sculpted, contoured, and flat abdominal region.

A corset trunkplasty or lift is a surgical procedure designed to remove excess skin from the upper and lower portions of your abdomen in order to produce a smoother, firmer, more contoured abdomen. By removing the excess skin, the Corset Trunkplasty can provide you with a completely flat abdomen and full-length waistline.

What Can I Expect Before, During, and After the Procedure?

Because a corset lift is a surgery, some preparation is required. This preparation will include discontinuing some medications. Additionally, if you smoke, we advise you to quit all nicotine (including patches) three months in advance of your surgery. In addition to these general preparations, Dr. Gardenier evaluates each patient’s individual circumstances to determine what is and is not permissible before your corset lift. The corset trunkplasty takes about five hours to complete, depending on the size of your frame and the amount of excess skin to be removed. The procedure itself involves three incisions to maximize skin removal and improve the overall body shape of the patient’s midsection.

The midline incision has the greatest impact on reducing the size of the waist. Consequently, a prominent vertical scar may initially be a concern, but in most patients, this scar fades significantly over time.

Recovery from the corset lift is less involved than for a lower body lift and about the same as our traditional abdominoplasty in Maine surgery. Still, you are advised to wear a compression garment for three weeks and take it easy for six weeks. However, you can comfortably lie on your back since all the incisions are on the front of the body.

Body Lift Before & After

View More Body Lift Results

Your Body Lift Results

The result typical of a corset trunkplasty is a completely flat and contoured waistline. Beyond that, patients who had a corset lift reported a simplified hygiene routine (no more folds of skin to clean under), better-fitting clothes, and improved confidence and self-image. If loose abdominal skin is causing you to wear only loose-fitting clothes, we recommend you contact Dr. Gardenier at Plastic Surgery Center in Portland, Maine. He may just have the answer you have been looking for. Call our office today at (207) 213-1867.