New Approach for Post-bariatric Abdominoplasty with Extended Vertical Resection: A Prospective Cohort Study.

INTRODUCTION: As the number of bariatric surgeries has increased, so has the demand for post-bariatric abdominoplasty. The aim of this study was to describe a new approach to anchor-line abdominoplasty for the treatment of post-bariatric surgery patients. METHODS: This prospective, longitudinal, single-center study was conducted with 20 women, 23-47 years of age, with a body mass index < 30 kg/m2, who had undergone gastroplasty. The vertical amount of tissue to be excised was estimated preoperatively by the pinch test. The amount of tissue to be removed by transverse resection was determined intraoperatively. Patient satisfaction with the body contour result was assessed. RESULTS: Patient self-assessment showed that 85% of patients were very satisfied, 10% were satisfied, and 5% were not very satisfied with the surgical results. There were no cases of flap necrosis or surgical wound dehiscence. CONCLUSION: The described technique resulted in improved body contour, good scar quality, and a high level of patient satisfaction. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE IV: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .