Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)

A tummy tuck, or abdominoplasty, is a procedure that removes the excess skin and fat from the abdomen and tightens muscles to create a flatter and more toned stomach profile.

The tummy tuck is one of the most widely performed procedures worldwide, particularly because of its high patient satisfaction rates and transformative aesthetic improvements. Patients who want a transformation after losing a significant amount of weight, have had children, or want to reshape their abdominal area for a slimmer and smoother appearance benefit greatly. ⁽¹⁾ Men get this procedure too! With Dr. Vanek’s advanced Renuvion and ultrasound-assisted liposuction (UAL) techniques, they can also enhance their muscle tone.

Dr. Paul Vanek, a double board-certified plastic surgeon, leads Mentor Plastic Surgery & MedSpa, one of Cleveland’s leading plastic surgery practices. With his extensive expertise and expert staff, they will assist you along the way of this transformation to help you reach your aesthetic goals. Please contact us online or call our office directly at (440) 205-5750 to schedule a consultation and plan your treatment!

“No one can guarantee perfection, but if it’s an outcome that is possible, I will strive to achieve that outcome. Give us a call,” says Dr. Paul Vanek.

Before and After Photos

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About Tummy Tucks

A tummy tuck creates a flattened, toned abdomen, delivering transformative results to patients who struggle with skin laxity and loose tissue after pregnancy or significant weight loss.

The increase in popularity for this procedure partially derives from the growing popularity of GLP-1 medications. As more people lose significant amounts of weight with these, they increasingly require treatment to address leftover skin. ⁽¹⁾

Diastasis recti is another common concern that a tummy tuck addresses. When the connective tissues stretch in the abdominal area, the muscles separate, causing a visible bulge in the stomach. This concern usually stems from pregnancy, improper heavy lifting techniques, weight loss, and chronic abdominal pressure. This problem does not reverse itself, even with weight loss! A tummy tuck addresses a diastasis recti by suturing the separated abdominal muscles back together and tightening the abdominal wall. It also addresses the loose skin that causes the visible bulge on the stomach area, transforming the abdomen by creating a flatter and smoother surface.

Benefits

This procedure creates profound changes in the patient’s abdomen by removing the excess tissue and tightening underlying muscles. Dr. Vanek’s expertise offers several benefits, including:

Candidates

The ideal candidate for this surgical procedure is someone who has lost a significant amount of weight or been pregnant and now struggles with excess, apron-like skin around the abdomen. Patients with separated abdominal muscles will also see improvements through this procedure. Patients with hernias in addition to diastasis recti will also benefit greatly. Dr. Vanek regularly treats hernias during tummy tucks, simultaneously allowing patients to address these concerns without a visible scar on their abdomen. Patients should be in good health and at a stable weight, a non-smoker (or willing to quit), and hold realistic expectations for their results. ⁽²⁾

“My staff and I are willing to go the extra mile and take a little more time to get that incision as low as possible.”

Personal Consultation

During your personal consultation, Dr. Vanek will sit down and guide you through the tummy tuck procedure. During this meeting, he will review your health and medical history, examine your abdominal area, evaluate your skin elasticity, fat distribution, and muscle structure. He will also ask you about your personal goals for this procedure, ensuring that he will deliver realistic results that align with your expectations. He will explain the specific technique he will utilize to perform your tummy tuck, including incision placements, anesthesia options, and whether including any other procedures can enhance your results.

Dr. Vanek will review photos of patients that look like you in your consultation. He will allow you to develop the best expectations for a great looking abdomen using the recommended state-of-the-art energies of ultrasound-assisted liposuction (UAL), AYON UAL, VASER UAL in combination with Renuvion to perfect your tummy tuck outcome!

This is also an opportunity to ask any questions you may have as well as address any concerns. Although a tummy tuck will deliver transformative results, you will have to recover, which Dr. Vanek will explain in great detail to facilitate optimal healing. We want you to feel comfortable, confident, and excited for this procedure!

Submit our online contact form to schedule your consultation or call us directly at (440) 205-5750 to reach our office in Concord, Ohio.

Preparation

Proper preparation for a tummy tuck facilitates a successful procedure and smooth recovery. After your consultation, Dr. Vanek will provide personalized preparation instructions. These may advise you to:

Procedure

On the day of your procedure, our team will welcome you into the operating room. Our team will make you feel comfortable and secure within this time leading up to the start of your surgery. At the start of your procedure, you will receive general anesthesia to keep you comfortably asleep throughout the process. Dr. Vanek will begin to make an incision in the lower abdomen, usually along the “bikini line,” spanning from hip to hip between the pubic hairline and belly button. He may make a second incision to release the belly button, which he will reposition later on. After lifting the skin flap, Dr. Vanek will tighten and stitch the abdominal muscles together to allow them to achieve optimal strength. After this crucial step, he will pull down the skin at appropriate tension over the abdominal muscles to make your contour safe and beautiful and will trim the excess skin and fat from the area.

After adjusting the abdominal muscles and trimming tissue, Dr. Vanek will relocate the navel. He will create a new hole that matches with the beautiful contour of the abdomen and suture it in its new position. Dr. Vanek will close the incisions, making sure that the results reflect the patient’s goals. He will then add protective dressings to the incision and belly button areas, then allow you to rest. This will last anywhere from two to five hours.

Renuvion Tummy Tuck

Dr. Vanek can use Renuvion during your tummy tuck as a scarless, minimally invasive alternative or to enhance your results. This procedure compliments a tummy tuck by delivering skin tightening results as well as a more sculpted stomach contour. This method is ideal for patients with mild to moderate or severe skin laxity due to aging, weight loss, or pregnancy. The Renuvion procedure uses helium plasma radiofrequency, which tightens the subdermal connective tissues in the abdominal area. The cold plasma energy delivers superior skin contraction, and the cooler temperature allows for controlled, precise tightening, reduced trauma, and accelerated healing. The procedure takes approximately one hour per area. Results are immediate and continue to improve as your body naturally heals, achieving optimal outcomes at six months post-op. ⁽⁴⁾

Dr. Vanek published the largest series of Lipoabdominoplasties with Renuvion in the world in the Aesthetic Surgery Journal! This clinical research showed that the added energies and outcome of Renuvion and ultrasound-assisted liposuction did not increase risks to the patient who underwent the procedure. The photos below speak for themselves!

Recovery & Results

Before even arriving at your procedure, you will have a bound book of detailed, thorough recovery instructions in hand, as well as a detailed map of how to take your prescribed medications before and after surgery. Dr. Vanek strives for patients to be able to walk a mile the first day and five miles the next after their procedure. During the initial hours after your surgery, you may feel tired, weak, and occasionally nauseated, but prescribed medications can help alleviate any discomfort. Although rest is important, Dr. Vanek expects his patients to have early mobilization, even up to 10 walks of 250 steps by day one after surgery. While you will not awaken with any tight garments, you will receive a binder and garments that you will begin wearing a few days after surgery.

By day one after surgery, you may have manageable pain using pain medicine, but his patients are up and walking, may shower, and go up and down stairs. The specific downtime you experience depends on your level of fitness, surgical history, age, and procedure. Because of the fascia plication and healing requirements of your particular anatomy, a tummy tuck patient has a six-week requirement of 25 pound weight lifting restriction. By a few days after surgery, you are walking upright, and can shower and attend to yourself. Most people return to a sedentary job requiring light duty or no heavy lifting by 10-14 days post-op. By weeks 2-3 the bruising and swelling will be gone, and you are much more mobile.

Dr. Vanek recommends lymphatic massage therapy, available by appointment, as soon as the next days after surgery. We encourage our patients without joint disorders to be walking 3-5 miles a day by day 10 after surgery. We will issue you a complete booklet of day by day and week by week recommendations. We reinforce these in each of your unlimited follow up visits. We take great pleasure in our team taking care of you in your after care visits. We see you often and review your physical progress, your medical status, your emotional status, your dietary and fluid management, and your overall progress.

At months two, three, and four, we will laser your scars using Sciton Broad Band Light technology. This valuable step in your recovery is included in all of Dr. Vanek’s surgical incisional management and facilitates remodeling, color and contour match, and overall desensitization of your surgical sites.

In each portion of your recovery, we will objectively review your progress. A few weeks after surgery you will be applying scar management creams twice daily. By eight weeks post-op, most people can resume the most strenuous lifestyle pursuits.

Your stomach that once had excess skin and fat surrounding your abdominal muscles will now appear flat, contoured, and more defined! With a stable weight and healthy lifestyle habits, tummy tuck results can be permanent.

“Patients often think I’m joking when I tell them how flat I can get their stomachs, but I exceed their expectations every time.”

Corresponding Procedures

A tummy tuck pairs effectively with other body contouring procedures to enhance the look of the abdomen. Some patients also desire to enhance other parts of their body to completely transform their appearance.

Renuvion

Although Renuvion is an effective tool for a tummy tuck, it is just as effective on other concerns, such as resolving skin laxity, skin tightening, improving body shape, and smoothing the surface of the abdomen and elsewhere on the body, face, and more.

VASER Liposuction

VASER is not a laser! VASER Liposuction is a minimally invasive ultrasound-assisted body sculpting procedure that uses a technology called Vibration Amplification of Sound Energy at Resonance to break down and remove stubborn fat while tightening the skin. By removing stubborn fat during a tummy tuck, your abdomen will appear smoother and your waistline will be more structured with improved fat removal.

Mommy Makeover

The mommy makeover is a set of surgical procedures that typically include a tummy tuck, breast enhancement, and liposuction, but Dr. Vanek can even include eyelid lifts, brow lifts, labiaplasty, and more to create a comprehensive rejuvenation. Dr. Vanek’s mommy makeover is more than the hollow cannula events seen since the 1970’s. He offers the state-of-the-art combination of AYON ultrasound-assisted liposuction, in combination with Renuvion, to achieve world-renowned results! This transformation is ideal for women who have finished having children and desire to restore their pre-pregnancy body.

Cost of Tummy Tuck in Cleveland

The cost of a tummy tuck will vary depending on the complexity of the procedure, techniques Dr. Vanek uses, whether or not you include other procedures, and more. During your consultation, he will outline the cost and any additional fees for your surgery.

To learn more about the cost of your tummy tuck, please call our Concord office at (440) 205-5750 or contact us online.

FAQ

References

1. Zhitny VP, Iftekhar N, Caravella P, Young JP, Zide B, Stile F. Abdominal Flap Necrosis and Wound Dehiscence following a Medical Tourist Tummy Tuck. Case Reports in Surgery. 2020;2020:8819102. doi:https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/8819102
2. Regan JP, Casaubon JT. Abdominoplasty. PubMed. Published 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28613712/
3. Saariniemi KMM, Salmi AM, Peltoniemi HH, Helle MH, Charpentier P, Kuokkanen HOM. Abdominoplasty Improves Quality of Life, Psychological Distress, and Eating Disorder Symptoms: A Prospective Study. Plastic Surgery International. 2014;2014:197232. doi:https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/197232
4. Vanek P. A Retrospective Evaluation of the Safety of Combining Helium-Based Plasma Radiofrequency Technology With Ultrasound-Assisted Lipoabdominoplasty. Aesthetic Surgery Journal Open Forum. 2025;7. doi:https://doi.org/10.1093/asjof/ojae116