Do You Need to be at Your Goal Weight Before Skin Removal Surgery?

Losing a high volume of weight through diet and exercise or bariatric surgery is a massive step toward a happier, healthier life. You fit in fashionable clothes, your breathing becomes less labored, and you are more mobile with fewer aches and pains in your joints and core muscles.

However, excess skin can be a problem because it is unattractive, uncomfortable, and leaves you with excess skin that exercise or diet can’t fix. If you seek answers on how to alleviate this skin issue and improve your quality of life, the solution is likely post-bariatric skin removal surgery.

Post-Bariatric Surgery

Board-certified plastic surgeon Dr. George Landis is adept at removing excess fat and skin after significant weight loss to deliver a more toned and slender appearance. Post-bariatric surgery targets multiple body areas like the abdomen, breasts, back, arms, buttocks, and thighs. Women who deal with similar issues after having children benefit from procedures like tummy tuck, breast reshaping, and mommy makeover. Dr. Landis can customize his body sculpting approach to achieve favorable results with all his patients.

When Should You Consider Skin Removal?

There are requirements to qualify for skin removal surgery. To determine a suitable candidate, Dr. Landis will ask a few basic questions.

  • Have you attained and maintained your goal weight for at least six months?
  • Are you in good health?
  • Are you a nonsmoker?
  • Do you fully understand the potential risk of surgery?
  • Are you prepared for an extended recovery?

Dr. Landis will assess your skin to determine the loose skin-to-body ratio. Before and during a person’s weight loss journey, the skin’s elasticity may determine how much loose skin they will have. For example, younger skin is more elastic and efficiently re-drapes over less underlying tissue. On the other hand, older skin has lost pliability and typically doesn’t snap back as effectively.

How Much Should I Weigh?

Although maintaining weight is essential to most of our patients, the amount of weight they lose is insignificant. The critical determinate is if your weight has become stable for an extended period. If you are still losing or perhaps gaining weight at the time of surgery, the skin removal benefits come into jeopardy.

Dr. Landis wants you to be within twenty to thirty pounds of your ideal weight before committing to surgery. Ideally, most patients want to get to their goal weight, but the most important thing to consider is if your weight is stable or not.

Learn more about post-bariatric surgery by scheduling a consultation with Dr. Landis. Call (952) 562-5940 to get started or contact Dr. Landis online.

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