A light day in the operating room... this weight loss patient is now 19.3 pounds lighter, and it was all excess tissue!! Abdominoplasty or tummy tuck is an aesthetic procedure performed for an abdominal deformity of excess skin and subcutaneous tissue and laxity of the abdominal wall musculature. The most common cause of abdominal deformity is pregnancy (often multiple pregnancies), which stretches the skin beyond its biomechanical capability to spring back and stretches the musculoaponeurotic structures of the abdominal wall. The result is stretching and thinning of these structures and diastasis of the rectus muscle. Major weight loss, whether from dieting or a gastric bypass surgery, also plays a role in excess skin and laxity of the abdominal wall. No surprise, The most significant area of the defect is around and below the umbilicus, where excess skin over a diastasis of the rectus muscles is most apparent. Abdominoplasty removes not just the excess fat and skin, but in most cases, it restores weakened or separated muscles and tightens then to create a smooth and firm abdominal profile. Photo credit to @drjosephmichaels