| Dr. Anita Patel is a plastic surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Here the doctor has answered some common questions that Bizymoms visitors have about Mommy Makeover.
Q. What is a Mommy Makeover?
A. After having children, many mothers feel that they are unable to return to their pre-pregnancy shape. Common areas of concern are "deflated" or drooping breasts, stretched out abdominal skin and muscles, and new fat deposits. Mommy Makeover is a term that refers to a combination of procedures performed in one surgery to restore a woman’s figure to a pre-pregnancy appearance. It typically includes breast lift and/or augmentation, tummy tuck, and possibly liposuction.
Q. Who is a good candidate for Mommy Makeover?
A. Good candidates for the Mommy Makeover meet several criteria, including being good candidates for each individual procedure, and also being otherwise healthy and medically optimized to tolerate a surgery that could last up to 6 hours. Also, women are often the primary caretakers of the household. In order to have a good outcome, the patient must have enough support at home for both herself and her family. A good candidate would have the ability to take time off from work and home responsibilities, and have someone to look after her during the initial postoperative period.
Q. What are the important facts about the safety and risks of the Mommy Makeover?
A. Not all patients are good candidates for the Mommy Makeover, and safety is the first priority. The Mommy Makeover works very well for patients who have a limited amount of work to be done for the breasts, abdomen, and liposuction areas. If each of the components is expected to take a long time during surgery, it may not be a good idea to combine them all in one setting. Also, if the patient does not have time to recover from a large surgery, doing it in smaller surgeries may fit better in her lifestyle. There is a risk of developing blood clots in the legs during or after prolonged surgery, so I take specific measures to prevent blood clots, and stress to my patients they need to walk the night of surgery as well.
Mommy Makeovers should only be done in fully accredited facilities, whether in a hospital setting or in a fully accredited ambulatory surgery center. Also, this type of procedure should only be done by plastic surgeons (not cosmetic surgeons or surgeons of another specialty since they are not trained in any of these procedures). Please note that when you are looking for "Board Certified" plastic surgeons, you should ask which board specifically the surgeon is certified by! The one you are looking for is the American Board of Plastic Surgery. There are many imitation boards that take on a similar name, so it’s best to do your research. Also, I think it is a good idea to stay the first night in an aftercare facility (or hospital) overnight.
Q. What happens during the Mommy Makeover surgery?
A. Typically during Mommy Makeover surgery, first the breasts are lifted and/or augmented. Next the tummy tuck is performed, and during this procedure the abdominal muscles which were stretched apart during pregnancy can be tightened. This can have the effect of cinching in the waistline. Then the extra skin and soft tissue from the lower abdomen are removed in such a way that the scar is hidden beneath underwear. Stretch marks from the lower abdomen are often removed during this procedure. If any hernias are present, they can also be addressed during the surgery. Lastly, if there are areas of limited fat deposits, liposuction of those areas can be done.
Q. What are the options for the Mommy Makeover?
A. Typically Mommy Makeover includes breast surgery, tummy tuck, and +/- liposuction. Regarding the breasts, the options are breast lift, breast augmentation, removal and replacement of pre-existing implants, breast reduction, or a combination of the above. Regarding the abdomen, options include liposuction alone, a mini-tummy tuck, or standard tummy tuck. Liposuction performed during Mommy Makeover is typically of limited sites and volumes (large volume liposuction is not performed during Mommy Makeover).
Q. What is the recovery time for a Mommy Makeover?
A. Typically patients should plan on taking two weeks off from work, and wait six weeks until they get back to exercising. I do like for my patients to be up and walking around the night of surgery, but you won’t feel back to yourself for a few weeks. After surgery you will also have drains from the tummy tuck, and possibly breasts depending on the type of surgery performed. The drains are removed once they are draining less than 30 cc over a 24 hour period (usually 3-5 days).
Q. How much will the Mommy Makeover cost?
A. The total cost depends on a number of factors, making it difficult to give one-price-fits-all pricing. The main considerations are which exact procedures are being done, how much work needs to be done on each individual area, if there are any implants to be used, if there is anything that may be covered by insurance (such as hernia repair), how long the surgery is expected to take, facility and anesthesia costs. For example, a patient who is undergoing breast augmentation and mini-tummy tuck will have a different cost than a patient having a full tummy tuck, breast lift and augmentation.
Q. How can we contact Dr. Patel if we have further questions?
A. Dr. Patel can be reached by telephone at her Beverly Hills and Newport Beach locations at 310-205-0212, and at her Los Angeles office at 213-248-1382. Her patient care coordinators are Shanly and Cerissa in Beverly Hills and Newport Beach, and Judy and Jackie in Los Angeles. Dr. Patel can also be reached by email at anitapatelmd@ymail.com, drpatel@roxburysurgery.com, or by email via her website. All of the contact information can also be found on Dr. Patel’s website www.anitapatelmd.com. |
