Hello, and welcome to
my
practice! I'm Dr. Stefan Mark
Szczerba (pronounced
Sher-ba).
I am a board
certified
Chicago plastic
surgeon with fellowship
training in cosmetic plastic surgery. This level of
training represents 9 years of training after medical school and is matched by only by a handful of plastic surgeons in the Chicagoland area. I have three offices in the
Chicago
area where we offer
both cosmetic and
plastic
surgery treatments
as well
as aesthetician
services
and non-invasive
procedures such as
Botox,
dermal fillers
and skin
resurfacing
treatments.
You can find everything
you
need for your
personal image
transformation
at one
of my conveniently
located offices in
and
around
Chicago.
I look
forward to
meeting
with you to
discuss your
makeover
desires.
10400 W. Higgins Road
Rosemont, IL 60018
(847) 853-9900
1786 Moon Lake Boulevard, #205
Hoffman Estates, IL 60169
(847) 885-1200
900 N. Kingsbury Street, Suite 130-N
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 286-1642
3226 N. Lincoln Avenue
Chicago, IL 60657
(773) 348-1800
ABDOMINOPLASTY (TUMMY TUCK)
See before and after photos of this procedure.
INTRODUCTION TO ABDOMINOPLASTY
A tummy tuck, called abdominoplasty, is a cosmetic surgical procedure that eliminates the extra tummy skin and tightens the muscles of the belly underneath the skin and fat to create a flatter, more appealing waist. The changes to the tummy area from having children or from weight gain or weight loss can be trimmed away, leaving you with a tight tummy.
There are two types of tummy tucks (abdominoplasties): the regular tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) and the mini tummy tuck (also called the modified-abdominoplasty or mini-abdominoplasty). In the regular tummy tuck, the effect of surgery is from the ribs to the pubic bone. In the mini abdominoplasty, the area beneath the belly button is has the most dramatic changes. The mini is particularly helpful for women who have that little “pooch” under the belly button area that refuses to go away with exercise.
The tummy tuck or abdominoplasty is routinely performed as part of a Mommy Makeover, which generally includes breast augmentation and/or breast lift, or breast reduction along with selected areas of liposuction to return your body to its pre-baby state.
GOOD CANDIDATES FOR ABDOMINOPLASTY
You are a good candidate for abdominoplasty if you are a healthy individual who has experienced the following:
- weight gain and weight loss cycles that have stretched out your skin and muscles
- pregnancy
- natural aging that resulted in sagging, stretched skin and stretching of the abdominal muscles
- If you have lost weight by diet and exercise or surgical assistance (lap band or gastric bypass)
Dr. Szczerba does recommend that you lose all the weight you desire before undergoing an abdominoplasty. However, in patients who have tried multiple times to lose weight and have trouble exercising due to the extra tissue around your waist, Dr. Szczerba has developed techniques that can help. He will gladly meet with you and evaluate your previous weight loss attempts to see if you there is more you can do prior to surgery so that you will be happy with your outcome!
If you are a female of childbearing age, you will want to wait to have an abdominoplasty until you have completed your family; otherwise, a pregnancy will undo all the results of the abdominoplasty procedure.
Occasionally, a severe weakening of your muscles during pregnancy will cause a hernia or large diasthasis (spreading of muscles) that can be addressed with a tummy tuck even if you plan have more children; however, a careful examination is required to confirm this.
HOW ABDOMINOLASTY IS PERFORMED
Dr. Szczerba performs tummy tucks under general anesthesia in an accredited surgical suite in Chicago, Rosemont or Hoffman Estates. Before surgery, Dr. Szczerba carefully marks your belly and will mark the position of your underwear line in efforts to keep any signs of surgery under your bikini line.
Once anesthesia has been administered, Dr. Szczerba will make an incision along the marks made before surgery and will lift the skin to expose the muscle layer underneath. A full tummy tuck requires the tissue to be elevated all the way to the ribs while a mini-tummy tuck stops just above the belly button. Dr Szczerba then will repair any muscle separation with stitches – this is called muscle plication.
After the plication of muscles is complete, liposuction can be used to remove small pockets of fat before extra skin and fat are trimmed away. Usually the liposuction is confined to areas that can be reached from the tummy tuck incision. Once this is complete, drains are placed to keep fluid from puddling under your skin and the skin is carefully stitched. If you are having a regular abdominoplasty, your belly button will remain connected to you but will be brought out onto your tightened skin with a very small, well concealed scar. A compressive garment will be placed.
RECOVERY FROM AN ABDOMINOPLASTY
Dr. Szczerba will call you the evening of your procedure to check on you, and you’ll see him in the office within a week to make sure your recovery is proceeding as it should. Abdominoplasty recovery will require that you wear a compressive garment for 4-6 weeks and avoid all heavy work, lifting or exercise for 6 weeks. At first, you will feel most comfortable walking in a slightly bent position and pain medication will be prescribed for discomfort. We encourage you to get out of bed and walk around every hour for 5 minutes at first, then increasing the time until you are comfortable standing upright. The final outcome will depend on the resolution of swelling, but is usually seen in 4-6 weeks.
You will have a scar in the bikini line area. This scar goes through all the normal color changes all scars do, but with most patients, this scar will fade to an almost invisible line, though some evidence of the scar will always be there. Most patients find that normal bikinis and bikini cut panties hide this scar quite nicely.
Our patients generally recover very well from their abdominoplasty and find that going shopping for clothing is a new and more fun experience than it was before their procedure! You’ll find your new contour to look much better in your clothing and you’ll feel younger and happier afterwards.
