How many procedures can be combined in a mommy makeover? [Dan Zegzula, MD, Portland]

Eva Sheie (00:00):
You're listening to Where Before Meets After. What is a mommy makeover and how do you think about it?

Dr. Zegzula (00:06):
When I think about mommy makeovers as being a series of operations, or a series of procedures, so more than one, usually, that will reverse some of the physical signs of being pregnant and having babies.

Eva Sheie (00:22):
Okay, so it's a combination. You're usually doing several things in one day.

Dr. Zegzula (00:26):
Correct.

Eva Sheie (00:27):
What can you do at the same time?

Dr. Zegzula (00:28):
Yeah, so I guess for safety reasons, we are limited in terms of time. A really good limit would be six to seven hours. Some surgeons are more comfortable extending that to up to eight hours, but I think that's a long day for the surgeon and harder on the patient, but I think it can be safely done, eight hours of anesthesia. So we're somewhat limited in how much we can do by how much time patient is under anesthesia, but in that period of time, we can definitely get through quite a bit. Body contouring procedures such as abdominoplasties and breast reductions with or without added liposuction. Those are all definitely doable under one operation and doing it safely and effectively.

Eva Sheie (01:10):
Do you ever decide to do things in two different stages where you would split the procedures into two different days of surgery, and why would you do that? What kind of case would that be?

Dr. Zegzula (01:21):
Most of the time, if we can do it at the same time, I think that's better. Patients have one recovery, but there are some times where we might split it up and the reasons for that would be one, perhaps a financial reason. It would be less expensive to do one operation and have a shorter period of time in the operating room. That's not too commonly the reason why. Two, and this is more common, and that would be perhaps somebody hasn't made their weight goal. I think I have a much more relaxed approach to say breast reduction or breast lifting when patients haven't reached their weight goal yet, and I'm a bit more strict when it comes to abdominoplasty and liposuction. Say patient comes in, wants to have their surgery, they're 15 or 20 pounds away from their ideal weight or the weight that they want to achieve before their tummy, but they're finding it hard to exercise because of the weight of their breasts or the size of their breasts, then it might be a great idea at that point say, okay, let's go ahead with your breast reduction. We'll do that one first. When you're ready, we can proceed with the tummy tuck. So sometimes we separate 'em that way.

Eva Sheie (02:25):
Thanks for listening. I'm your host, Eva Sheie. Follow the show and submit questions for our experts at wherebeforemeetsafter.com. Where Before Meets After is a production of The Axis.