The lower body lift

Procedure steps

• Dr. Petit will ask you a number of questions about your medical and surgical histories (especially bariatric surgery: by-pass, sleeve gastrectomy, gastric ring), your weight and your size as well as your tobacco consumption.
• He will listen to you in order to understand your discomfort as well as your expectations relating to your silhouette. Patients often reveal their expectations relating to their belly but they are shy of talking about their falling buttocks and/or mentioning the dippling effect of cellulite on their buttocks, that they reckon to secondarily improve by playing sports, which obviously is not achievable.
• Therefore, he will perform a thorough physical exam, in order to suggest the most appropriate surgical strategy relating to your anatomy and to your request.
• Dr. Petit will provide information on the scar positioning, treatment process and procedure limits, post-operative recoveries as well as main risks, so as to make an informed decision.

Procedure limits

• The upper body lift does not correct the excessive skin rolls in the back area and upper body cutaneous excess. These will imply an upper body lift.
• The lower body lift does not enable to treat major sagging skin (in width) at the level of the outer thighs, which requires an additional outer thigh lift.
• The combination of both procedures is also known as the lateral body lift.

Good candidates for a lower body lift are those

• With circumferential cutaneous fat excess in the lower body area.
• With aesthetic and functional unease (difficulties in getting dressed, in their intimate life.)
• Accepting the scarring price.
• And having understood the procedure limits.

Pre-operative instructions

General pre-operative instructions relating to aesthetic surgery

• Smoking cessation 1 month before and after the procedure.
• Discontinuation of medicines which increase bleeding 10 days before and after the procedure: aspirin, anti-inflammatory and anticoagulant medicines, vitamin E.

Specific pre-operative instructions relating to silhouette surgery

• To be at your ideal and stable weight for at least 6 months before the procedure.
• Oral contraception discontinuation 1 month before the procedure in order to reduce the risk of venous thrombo-embolism (phlebitis and pulmonary embolism).
• Purchase of a compression garment.

Procedure stages

Pre-operative markings are performed by Dr. Petit before the procedure.

The operation is performed under general anesthesia, with a two-night hospital stay at the Surgical Center.

The procedure includes three surgical processes:

• Firstly, it consists in performing a liposuction of hips and jodhpur thighs, so as to reshape your buttock contour.
• Secondly, a buttock lift is performed, which enables to pull up and to enhance your buttocks with your own fat.
• Lastly, an abdominal plasty with an umbilical transposition is performed, which aims to remove the lower abdominal apron area, to do a tummy tuck and to reposition the umbilicus.

Two scars are necessary:

• 1 lower circular scar hidden in the pants.
• 1 scar around the umbilicus.

The skin closure is performed with subcutaneous resorbable sutures.

A dressing modeling the back is performed at the end of the procedure.

What to expect after surgery

The lower body lift is a little or moderately painful procedure in the absence of an associated gesture on the abdominal wall muscles. Pains are soothed by analgesics.

Ecchymosis (bruises) are classical and last 2 à 3 weeks after the procedure.

An œdema (swelling) is constant and of varying lengths, diminishing within a few months.

Daily nursing care after your shower with a soft soap are necessary during 15 days.

Three preventive measures against phlebitis are established after the procedure: the affected leg elevated as well as the walk, the wearing of compression stockings and the daily injection of an anticoagulant (medicines which thin the blood) during 15 days.

The sitting position is not recommended during 10 days in order to limit the cutaneous pressure on the scar, especially at the intergluteal cleft area, a fragile region for the scarring. The sitting and lying positions have to be initially privileged.

It is recommended to wear a compression garment during 1 month to reduce the post-operative oedema.

The progressive resumption of daily activities is possible within the first post-operative days. It is a tiring procedure and rest is recommended for 3 weeks to 1 month.

The resumption of professional activities can be done within 3 weeks to 1 month after the procedure, and depends on the operative gesture performed and on the patient’s work.

The resumption of sports activities is authorized within 6 weeks after the procedure.

Procedure risks

The potential complications of a lower body lift are weak, provided that it is performed by a surgeon specialized in this type of procedure.

Mains risks are the following

In the first hours following the surgery:

• a haematoma (blood pooling), a rare complication requiring a revisionary process in order to drain it.

In the post-operative month:

• Healing problems, resulting in one or several localized disunities (opening of the scar) requiring a directed healing.
• A seroma (collection of fluid), requiring a drainage in consultation.
  Transitory troubles of skin sensitivity.
• An infection, a cutaneous neurosis: rare complications.
• A phlebitis, a pulmonary embolism: exceptional complications with the preventive measures established previously.

In the long term:

• A scar expansion: the most frequent complication, which requires a revisionary procedure.
• A pathological scarring (hypertrophic scars or keloids).

Long-term outcome

The final result relating to a lower body lift is reached between 3 to 6 months after the procedure, once the post-operative edema has disappeared.

The scar initially is inflammatory (red and swollen) throughout the first months, then it will fade progressively without disappearing. The final aspect of your scar is not predictable and will be known at the end of the cicatricial maturation (between 1 and 2 years after the procedure).

This result is stable and long-lasting except in cases of fluctuations in body weight or pregnancy.

The lower body lift is a reliable and an efficient procedure which reshapes the lower body. It generates a huge aesthetic and functional benefit, which accounts for a high degree of satisfaction of the patients using this surgery.