Lifting of the inner thighs

Procedure steps

• Dr. Petit will begin with questioning your medical and surgical histories (especially your bariatric surgery: by-pass, gastrectomy sleeve, gastric ring), your weight and your size, as well as your tobacco consumption.
  He will listen to you in order to understand your motivations and your discomfort relating your thighs.
• He will carry out a clinical examination in order to suggest the most appropriate surgical strategy adapted 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

• Thigh lift surgery does not act on the cutaneous sagging, which sometimes occurs above the knees.
• Thigh lift surgery does not enable to treat the cutaneous sagging of the outer side of the thighs. This one will require an outer thigh lift surgery or a lateral body lift.

Good candidates for thigh lift surgery are those

• With wrinkled and flabby thighs.
• With aesthetic and/or functional discomfort (difficulty in getting dressed, moving arms).
• Wishing smoother and firmer thighs.
• 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 thigh lift surgery

• To be at your stable and ideal weight for 6 months at least.
• Purchase of a compression garment.

Procedure stages

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

This one is performed under general anesthesia and requires a hospital stay of one night at the clinic in most cases.

It consists in performing a liposuction in the anterior and inner sides of the thighs and in removing excess skin from the inner side of the thighs.

The scar is vertical and concealed inside the thighs. Its length will depend on the extent of your excess skin. It is often necessary to extend this scar to a diagonal scar located outside the labia majora and concealed inside the underwear.

The thigh lift surgery technique with horizontal scars in the groin is less efficient and correspond to moderate excess skin.

The cutaneous closure is performed with sub-cutaneous dissolving sutures.
A dressing modeling the thighs is performed at the end of the procedure.

What to expect after surgery

Thigh lift surgery is a little or moderate painful procedure. Pains are well soothed by analgesics.

Ecchymosis (bruises) are classical and subside within 2 to 3 weeks after the operation. An oedema (swelling) is constant and of variable duration, gradually subsiding 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) over 15 days.

The wearing of a compression garment is recommended during 1 month in order to reduce the post-operative œdema.

The resumption of daily activities is possible the day following the procedure.
The resumption of professional activities is possible from 7 to 15 days following the procedure.

The resumption of sports activities can be done within 6 weeks following the operation.

Procedure risks

The complications of thigh lift surgery are weak and will be mentioned by Dr. Petit during the consultation.

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 necrosis: rare complications.
• A phlebitis, a pulmonary embolism: exceptional complications with the preventive measures established previously.

In the long term:

• A scar expansion, requiring a revisionary procedure.
• A pathological scarring (hypertrophic scars or keloids).

Long-term result

The final result of thigh lift surgery is obtained between 3 to 6 months after the procedure, when the post-operative oedema has disappeared.

The scars initially are inflammatory (red and swollen) the first months, then they will fade gradually without disappearing. The final aspect of your scar is not predictable and will be known at the end of the scarring maturation (between 1 and 2 years after the procedure). The result is long-lasting except in case of significant changes in body weight or pregnancy. Thigh lift surgery is an efficient procedure which reshapes the contour of the thighs and provides a high degree of patient satisfaction relating to the functional and aesthetic aspects.