Choosing Between a Tummy Tuck and CoolSculpting®

If your midsection needs some tweaking, a tummy tuck or CoolSculpting® are possible options. But which treatment is right for you? Dr. Daniel Laughlin and the team at Laughlin Plastic Surgery in Annapolis and Easton, Maryland, can help you decide which aesthetic treatment will give you the results you desire.

What is a tummy tuck?

Most of us would love a toned tummy. But sometimes diet and exercise don’t do the trick because of these reasons:

• Heredity
• Pregnancy
• Aging
• Surgeries
• Weight fluctuations

Abdominoplasty, better known as tummy tuck surgery, removes extra skin and fat and, often, strengthens weak or separated muscles. Typically, recovery from the surgery takes six to eight  weeks. Ultimately, the result is a firmer, smoother abdomen.

Tummy tucks aren’t a substitute for maintaining a healthy weight and exercising regularly. And if you have a tummy tuck and yo-yo diet or have future pregnancies, the long-term outcome of the surgery will not be optimal.

What are tummy tuck risks?

Any surgery comes with risks, and tummy tucks are no different. Here are some things that can go wrong during or after a tummy tuck.

• Bleeding
• Problems with anesthesia
• Infection
• Swelling and fluid accumulation 
• Numbness
• Scarring
• Skin discoloration
• Cardiac and pulmonary complications
• Asymmetric results

What is CoolSculpting?

CoolSculpting, aka cryolipolysis, is a nonsurgical, noninvasive fat-removal treatment that freezes and kills fat cells. After treatments, your body will take two to six months to eliminate the dead fat cells naturally.

CoolSculpting is not weight loss; it’s fat cell loss that can remove 20% to 25% of the fat cells in body areas treated, which include:

• Abdomen
• Thighs
• Under the chin
• Flanks
• Back
• Under the butt
• Upper arms

CoolSculpting treatments take about an hour and have no downtime.

Tummy tuck or CoolSculpting?

Either a tummy tuck or CoolSculpting will give you a flatter, smoother midsection. Here’s how to decide which procedure is right for you.

Do you have loose skin?

CoolSculpting can firm up your tummy. But if you have a lot of excess skin, often the result of pregnancies or extreme weight loss, then a tummy tuck is the better procedure for you.

Do you have time to recover?

A tummy tuck is major surgery that could require up to eight weeks of recovery time before you’re able to get back to normal life. 

CoolSculpting has no downtime. You can go back to work immediately after treatments. 

What’s your goal? 

If you’re looking for a dramatic solution to sagging skin, pockets of fat, and loose abdominal muscles, than a tummy tuck is your better option.

If your midsection has a few problem areas that diet and exercise haven’t helped, then CoolSculpting is the way to go.

If you’re considering a tummy tuck, contact us today at Laughlin Plastic Surgery and schedule a consultation.