What Is a Tummy Tuck?
A Tummy Tuck or abdominoplasty, is a cosmetic surgery to remove unwanted skin and fat from the middle and the bottom of the abdomen. It can also involve tightening the muscles which can leave the patient with a flatter abdomen than before and will often result in a reduction to the waistline. This type of surgery can be carried out on men and women and many find that if they only have excess fat on lower abdomen then they may be able to choose to have a mini tuck or partial tuck carried out.
Can the surgery be carried out on the National Health Service?
A tummy tuck cannot usually be carried out on the NHS as they do not deem it to be a necessary surgery. There are some rare circumstances in which they will pay for it to be done such as disease or if someone is badly disfigured. This includes anyone who has lost large amounts of weight and has large amounts of loose skin around the abdomen. Tummy tucks can also be carried out on patients if it can be proved that their appearance is causing them to experience psychological problems. In this instance the doctor would request an assessment by a mental health specialist. To find out whether you would be eligible for NHS surgery your local GP will carry out an assessment and if he feels you would entitled to funding he will start a grant application. If you are not a suitable candidate for surgery on the NHS then you could consider a private loan for the funds as many private medical insurance companies will decide whether you can have the surgery in a similar way to the NHS. This means that your insurance company may well refuse to pay if the NHS has already done so.
What are the risks of this surgery?
As with any surgery there are things that can go wrong, your surgeon should discuss these with you prior to carrying out the operation and explain the small risks involved and that any chance of experiencing problems after the surgery are rare. It is possible to find that you get an infection or a blood clot afterwards. The chances of either are unlikely and an infection can be treated with antibiotics while wearing surgical stockings and moving around as soon as possible greatly reduce the chance of a blood clot forming.
Are there any after effects?
When your surgery is carried out the surgeon will endeavour to position any scar under your bikini line so that it cannot be seen. You may find that you have an area of numbed skin after the operation particularly around the belly button. Feeling will return to this over several months although you may find that you are left with a small area where feeling never returns.
