Tummy Tuck
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Knoxville, TN • (865) 450-9253
There are very few women who do not have changes in their abdominal wall after child bearing. Whether they come from the Knoxville area, Johnson City, Cookeville, or Cleveland, most tell us that they have been self conscious about their stomachs for a long time.
Some have loose sagging abdominal skin. Others have abdomens that protrude because their abdominal muscles have been stretched by pregnancy. Some have lost weight and have excess tissue that won’t go away on it’s own. Almost all have tried dieting and exercising and are discouraged by the lack of results. In fact, patients find that as they lose weight the skin becomes looser and looks even worse!
Liposuction alone can’t fix that, nor does it repair the abdominal muscles or remove the excess skin. So, if you want to get your pre-pregnancy tummy back, there is no substitute for a Lipoabdominoplasty.
A tummy tuck can be combined with excision of the hip rolls as you can see in the first patient below. We are fondly referring to this procedure as the “muffinator” because it also treats the hip areas causing “muffin tops”.
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Before & After Abdominoplasty with Excision of Hip Rolls (Muffinator): She is 5’5” and weighs 160 pounds. Here is a 35-year-old mom who wanted to get rid of the excess skin and fat in her abdomen and hip area. Dr. Reath performed an abdominoplasty with excision of hip rolls for this great result.
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Before & After Abdominoplasty: She is 5’8” and weighs 142 pounds. Here is a 31-year-old mother who has three children. She was able to diet and exercise her way back to a healthy weight but was unable to correct the separation of her abdominal muscles and get rid of the excess skin from her pregnancies. Dr. Reath performed an abdominoplasty for these wonderful results.
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Before and After Tummy Tuck: She is 5’6” and weighs 160 pounds. Here is a 49-year-old mom who had been concerned about changes in her abdomen after carrying three children. Dr. Reath performed a lipoabdominoplasty during which he repaired the laxity in her abdominal muscles and removed fat and excess skin. She is pictured before and six months after her tummy tuck. Quite a difference!
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Before & After Tummy Tuck: This patient is 29 years old, is 5' 3" tall and weighs 131 pounds. She was proud of the weight she lost after her pregnancy but was concerned about the excess abdominal skin leftover. Dr. Reath performed a full abdominoplasty and was able to tighten her abdominal muscles, which had been stretched from her pregnancy and remove all her excess skin. She was absolutely thrilled!
Above photographs are actual patients of Dr. Reath's who have given consent for the use of their photographs for this website.
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Before & After Tummy Tuck: This is a 39-year-old woman who was concerned about her abdomen after having three children. She was within 5 - 10 pounds of her ideal weight. Dr. Reath performed a Lipoabdominoplasty to achieve this toned, attractive look.
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Before & After Abdominoplasty- She is 5’7” and weighs 133 pounds. Here is a 51-year-old mother of two who was concerned about the excess skin on her abdomen. She had recently lost 40 pounds and was comfortable with her current weight. Dr. Reath performed a full abdominoplasty to remove the excess skin and repair her abdominal muscles which had been stretched out during her pregnancies. She is pictured here six months later. What a transformation!
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Before & After Abdominoplasty- She is 5’2” and weighs 133 pounds. Here is a young mom who did not like the appearance and contour of her abdomen. Even though she worked out daily, she told us she was unable to get her tummy back to the way it was before she had her baby. She is pictured here 6 months after her abdominoplasty absolutely thrilled with her new figure.
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Before & After Tummy Tuck: This is a 37-year old mother of three who was concerned with the excess skin in her abdomen after three pregnancies. She runs twenty miles a week,works out in the gym and follows a very healthy diet so she is close to her ideal weight. She had a full lipoabdominoplasty and is very proud of her flat, toned tummy. (We are proud of her too.)
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Before & after Abdominoplasty: She is 5’8” and weighs 160. Here is a 32-year-old woman who came to us after she lost over 65 pounds through diet and exercise. Although she was happy with her weight-loss, it came with significant skin laxity on her abdominal area that she wanted removed. Dr. Reath performed a tummy tuck, also known as an abdominoplasty, and she is pictured here 6 months later with a flat, firm tummy, understandably thrilled with the results.
When reviewing tummy tuck pricing please keep in mind that the overwhelming majority of women we see are candidates for a full abdominoplasty. Some very lucky patients only need the area below their belly buttons fixed. For them a modified (mini) abdominoplasty is just the ticket. If you have a large amount of excess skin to be removed from major fluctuations in weight, you may need an extended procedure which takes more time in the operating room and could require a hospital stay.
The cost of a tummy tuck with Dr. Reath includes both surgical and anesthesia fees, our exclusive recovery kit with silicone scar prevention shapes, recovery garments and all follow-up visits.
| Tummy Tuck Procedure | Cost | Cash Price |
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| Full Abdominoplasty | $7,985 | $7,586 |
| Modified Abdominoplasty | $5,411 | $5,140 |
| Extended Abdominoplasty | $8,943 | $8,620 |
| “Muffinator” Abdominoplasty with Hip Rolls | $10,868 | $10,325 |
Cash Discount: Good news! We offer a 5% discount for our patients who would like to pay with cash or check instead of using a credit card or financing.
Board-certified plastic surgeon David B. Reath, MD is renowned for his surgical skills and his commitment to public education. Practicing in Knoxville, Tennessee since 1986, his personal approach with patients is what truly sets him apart.
Traditionally, abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) and liposuction have been separate procedures. A Lipoabdominoplasty is a new, novel single-stage approach combining extensive liposuction with the traditional abdominoplasty approach to the muscles and skin.
As Dr Reath explains, “Lipoabdominoplasty is probably my favorite operation. I have always liked my results from tummy tucks, and by adopting these improved techniques, the results keep getting better. What we are able to do with this operation is to restore or improve the appearance of a part of the body that, in women, has been changed by pregnancy and child bearing. The changes that are made with this surgery cannot be achieved by diet and exercise alone. And, we are restoring what has been changed by bringing another life into this world. Cool stuff, really.”
Dr. Reath explains why no amount of core exercises can repair abdominal muscles that have been stretched during pregnancy in the video.
Not everyone needs a full lipoabdominoplasty. If the area of loose skin and fat is entirely below the bellow button, a mini-lipoabdominoplasty is possible. During a mini-lipoabdominoplasty the incision can be hidden in the bikini area, there is no scar around the belly button, and the recovery can be a bit shorter. Women who have had Cesarean Sections are delighted to find out he can often use the same incision.
If the area that is to be treated also includes the upper abdomen, Dr. Reath will suggest a full abdominoplasty. In this the incision extends outward toward the hipbone. The length of these incisions depends on the amount of skin that needs to be removed. It is usually possible for Dr. Reath to place these incisions so they can be hidden underneath a swimsuit. There may also be an incision around the belly button as this is re-positioned during the tummy tuck.
It is important to understand that an abdominoplasty is not considered a weight loss procedure and is best suited for men and women that are in relatively good shape. A tummy tuck is not recommended for you if you still need to lose a significant amount of weight or if you plan on becoming pregnant again.
Here is a Body Mass Index calculator for you to get a general idea if you may be a good candidate for a tummy tuck at your present weight. You should have a BMI less than 30 to safely consider an abdominoplasty.
BMI is a number calculated from a person's weight and height. BMI provides a fairly reliable indicator of body fatness for most people and is used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problems.
Your weight ( pounds) is in the category for adults of your height ( feet, inches)
To learn more, visit the CDC's Healthy Weight website
Have a question about tummy tucks? Ask Dr. Reath.
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Dr. Reath performs lipoabdominoplasties under general anesthesia. Helping our patients manage a speedy recovery is one of our primary missions. The length of the recovery will depend on the amount of muscle repaired, and the physical condition of the patient. For a full abdominoplasty there can be a recovery period is usually 3 to 4 weeks, but can be longer — paticularly if you have a strenous job. This may seem a like long time, but the muscles repaired are used for everything we do. And the better the repair, the better the long term result. For a mini-lipoabdominoplasty, the recovery period will be much shorter.
Good News for Today’s Tummy Tuck Patients
Drains, one of the most uncomfortable part of recovering after a tummy tuck, are no longer needed. Dr. Reath explains the recent advances that make this possible.
Our Surgical Recovery Kits are a great personal touch. Patients tell us that the recovery kits we include with their surgeries are an area that really sets us apart. Each recovery kit contains items hand-picked to make your recovery faster and more pleasant. People who have had surgery with other doctors are amazed that we include these kits at no charge for all of our surgery patients.
Tummy Tuck
Recovery ProductsVisit our online store.
Not our patient? No problem!
We have lovingly put together a kit of everything you’ll need during your tummy tuck recovery specifically for patients of other plastic surgeons. You’ll appreciate the extra post-surgical binder because you won’t be feeling like doing much laundry. Even better, the price of the kit is much less than if you bought each item separately.
Our staff has just written an amazing free eBook based on suggestions from some of our tummy tuck and mommy makeover patients. The Plastic Surgery Planner is 40 pages of best practices with everything you need to know about planning for your plastic surgery and recovery. It’s a must-read for anyone planning to have a tummy tuck. It’s a free download.
Plastic Surgery Planner
Tips to Manage a Speedy Recovery