The abdominal wall (internal abdomen) is a structure formed by interconnected muscle groups and membranes, which surrounds and protects the internal organs, just like a cylinder. At the same time, the movements of these muscle groups control the bending and rotation of the trunk in different directions. This cylindrical shape is formed by a pair of muscles that form the front part of the abdominal wall, starting just below the breasts and extending side by side all the way to the groin. These muscles are called 'Rectus Abdominis Muscles'. The rectus muscles provide the forward movement of the body (shuttle movement), and the weakest part of the entire abdominal wall is the thick membrane stretching between the two rectus muscles.
What are the Deformations Caused by Pregnancy in the Abdominal Wall?
The abdomen grows especially in the last months of pregnancy. In women who gain excess weight or whose abdominal structure is not strong enough, the abdominal wall expands. At the same time, the membrane that holds the rectus muscles together is torn and the muscles move away from each other, creating a gap between them. This condition is called 'Rectus Diastasis'.
Especially after repeated pregnancies; Between the rectus muscles moving away from each other, the stomach is displaced forward and expands. The increased volume of the stomach delays the feeling of fullness, and after eating more food, the stomach becomes more prominent. This condition manifests itself as both abdominal sagging and obesity in women. Fat in the abdominal area and sagging skin due to expansion accompany the picture. In conclusion; Expansion of the stomach, characterized by swelling just above the belly button, and skin sagging below the belly button, occur as a permanent problem.
What are the Problems Caused by Abdominal Sagging?
The most important problem is unpreventable weight gain and obesity. These patients feel slimmer and fitter in the morning due to the emptying of stomach contents during the night. However, with the first meal, the forward movement of the stomach is triggered and abdominal sagging occurs.
While the person looks older and out of shape due to sagging of the abdomen, the person's mobility decreases in case of severe weight gain.
Abdomen Sagging causes the woman to avoid social environments due to reasons such as not liking her own body, decreasing her sense of self-confidence, not being able to fit the clothes she wears, and avoiding her body drawing attention.
What is Abdominoplasty?
The surgery that allows both the collection of sagging abdominal skin and the recovery of the abdominal muscles that have expanded, separated and moved away from each other is called 'Abdominoplasty'. In this surgery; It is similar to a cesarean section, but a longer incision is made to reach the deformed abdominal muscles first. These muscles are stitched together along their length and the separation between them is eliminated. This process is called 'Rectus Plication'.
What are the Types of Abdominoplasty?
Abdominoplasty can be performed in two types: mini and full. What determines which type of surgery will be performed is the degree of relaxation in the rectus muscles and the amount of sagging in the skin.
In Full Abdominoplasty Surgery; The belly button is separated, the separated muscles are brought closer together from top to bottom, and the underlying tissue, starting from the belly button, is completely removed.
In Mini Tummy Tuck surgery, the procedure is applied only to the part below the belly button, and the belly button is not separated.
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