After Weight Loss Surgery in San Antonio, TX

Loosing a significant amount of weight can be a major milestone in one’s life. Unfortunately, this frequently leaves behind stretched and sagging skin and muscle. Dr. Decherd and Dr. Isakson can help patients in these situations complete their weight loss transformation by performing surgery that restores and tightens the skin and underlying muscle. Dr. Decherd and Dr. Isakson are board-certified plastic surgeons practicing in San Antonio, Texas who offers a number of skin removal and body tightening procedures. These include lower and upper body lifts, thigh lifts, arm lifts and tummy tuck surgeries. This type of surgery, typically recommended for patients who have lost 100 pounds or more, is especially common among bariatric weight loss patients. For best results, we recommend patients be near their final goal weight and that their weight loss has stabilized before undergoing surgery.

Weight loss patients will consider after weight loss surgery to correct or enhance one or more of the following conditions:

• Deflated and sagging breasts with nipples that point downward
• Loose and hanging skin on the abdomen
• Excess skin and pockets of fat on the hips
• Excess and deflated skin on and under the buttocks
• Loose and hanging skin around the knees and inner thighs
• Hanging skin on the underside of the arms (“bat wings”)

Loose and hanging skin on the neck (“turkey neck”)

The goal of after weight loss surgery is to reduce the amount of loose skin that collects and hangs on the body and to lift the body part, so it appears tighter. Multiple areas of the body may need to be addressed, depending on the needs of each patient. Most surgeons will group body parts together and stage them multiple surgeries. Doing so helps reduce the risk of complications, such as blood loss and infection. Examples of this grouping include:

• Upper body (Liposuction, breast lift, tummy tuck, arm lift)
• Lower body (Liposuction, butt lift, thigh lift, lower body lift)

After weight loss surgery is performed under general anesthesia in an accredited surgical facility. Patients are usually required to spend the night in the hospital so they can be monitored. The recovery following this surgery can be a slow process. While the post-surgical results can be life-changing for many weight loss patients, scarring is an unfortunate part of this process. Every attempt is made during surgery to minimize scarring as much as possible. Patients should adhere to a healthy lifestyle so that the results achieved through surgery are not compromised.

Common body parts that may need skin reduction surgery include the abdomen, buttocks, upper thighs, breasts, arms and neck. The breasts and abdomen are among two of the most popular areas addressed. A large majority of individuals will address the breasts (with a breast lift), and the tummy (with a tummy tuck) in a single surgery. As you lose weight, you will notice which areas are most concerning, and you can begin discussing cosmetic surgery with your plastic surgeon.

Most plastic surgeons require patients to be at or near their goal weight before moving forward with this surgery. However, this isn’t always the case. Sometimes, removing the loose skin is all it takes to accelerate the loss of the final pounds—especially if the loose skin is getting in the way of exercise and mobility.

In most cases, no. Insurance companies consider this surgery to be cosmetic, and they usually do not cover any of the surgical expenses. However, each surgical case is different and may have a special circumstance. Our billing coordinator works to provide accurate estimates and thoroughly checks the benefits of each provider.