When Can I Start Using Scar Cream After Tummy Tuck
Tummy tuck scars look like little dimples when you’re done healing. They’re about the size of a dime, and they’ll fade over time.
In fact, many women are surprised by how little their tummy tuck scars look like actual scars at all. You can expect to have some redness and swelling for the first few days after your surgery, but by day 4 or 5, your incisions should be almost invisible—and they’ll be even less noticeable with each passing week.
Tummy tuck scars are not only a visual indication of your success, but they also help to prevent the skin from sagging in the future. In most cases, tummy tucks leave a scar that is about 3-4 inches long and about 1-1.5 inches wide. The length of the scar depends on the size of your belly button and how much excess skin was removed during surgery.
After a stomach tuck, when may I begin using scar cream?
Abdominoplasty is a surgical procedure that offers patients a youthfully slim, firm, and flat abdominal contour after just one procedure. However, recapturing this figure is not an easy task, and patients must trade in their abdominal flab, stubborn fat, sagging skin, and stretch marks for a permanent horizontal scar. Traditional tummy tuck surgery involves a primary incision in the lower abdomen, a second incision around the navel, and a shorter incision between the hip bones.
Scarring can vary significantly from patient to patient based on individual healing abilities. After surgery, the scar is generally thin and pink, and the body immediately triggers a healing response to close the incision over the next few weeks. After one month, the scar becomes darker, thicker, and more noticeable, and the appearance may worsen over the next few months. After six months, the scar may still be red and raised but should begin to lighten soon if it has not already done so. After one year, the scar may be fully mature and noticeably flatter, thinner, lighter, and less noticeable, and it will continue to fade.
After five years, the mature scar will have faded noticeably and may continue to fade somewhat over time. Most patients feel they are well worth the benefits of achieving the smooth and flat abdominal contour they desire. Dr. Schlechter places the incisions as discreetly as possible to minimize scarring, and most tummy tuck scars are easily hidden under panties and swimsuits.
6 Things You Should Do For Your Tummy Tuck Scars
Dr. Schlechter strategically places tummy tuck incisions low between the hips so that most clothing can hide the scars. To help reduce the appearance of your scars, it is important to follow all of Dr. Schlechter’s post-operative instructions carefully. If you notice any signs of problematic scarring, contact Dr. Schlechter right away. Use silicone gel, cream, or sheets to care for your scars. Avoid sun exposure to the scar, keep it moisturized, and avoid irritating clothing or products. Following these tips to minimize your tummy tuck scars can improve their appearance and ensure that you have the greatest possible surgical results. Laser treatments to help suppress the scar are also available if necessary.
All surgery involves incisions, and these incisions turn into scars. With proper care and these great tips, the scars you get from your tummy tuck surgery can be visibly reduced so they’re barely noticeable.
Aflatter stomach, contoured waist, smoother skin, and better muscle tone — your tummy tuck surgery has done wonders for your body. You’re ecstatic about your leaner, fitter shape, but are concerned about how to minimize the appearance of the scars you’ve been left with. Typical tummy tuck scars are located in one or more of these areas:
Pelvic area
Regardless of whether you had a mini or full tummy tuck, you’ll have a scar that runs horizontally across your lower abdomen from hip to hip, located a few centimetres below your belly button. The horizontal scar can vary in length. It may be just a few centimetres, which is often the case for mini tucks, or extend well over each hip to the sides of your back. The scar may also be placed in relatively the same spot where a C-section was.
Belly button
Full abdominoplasty involves a scar around your belly button. This scar may be quite noticeable at first, but with time, you’ll notice that it virtually disappears because it blends in so well with your belly button.
Lower abdomen
In rare cases, you may also have a scar that runs from your belly button vertically down to the horizontal incision.
The most effective treatments to fade tummy tuck scars
Abdominoplasty scars can be noticeable for up to a year following the procedure, with lighter skin types generally turning pink first and then fade to a thin, white line. Darker skin types may heal dark and pigmented at first and then lighten over time. To minimize the appearance of these scars, several popular treatment options are available.
- Taping: Patients typically close abdominoplasty incisions with dissolvable sutures placed under the skin, which is then covered with steri-strips/paper tape to protect the incision and minimize tension. The light pressure from the tape against the incision has been shown to help minimize scarring as well. Patients often have to continue taped the incision for about 6 weeks, changing the tape every 5-7 days.
- Scar Fading Creams & Topicals: There are many scar creams on the market, but none are a miracle cure for scarring. The simplest and least expensive option is using moisturizing cream with vitamin E, while some more advanced creams contain silicone or other skin lightening agents to suppress pigment cell activity. They usually don’t recommend using these creams until about 6 weeks after surgery.
- Laser and Light-Based Treatments: After a year, patients can explore options like resurfacing lasers or intense light-based treatments to pull any pigment from the scar or fade residual redness. Laser resurfacing treatments like HALO™ and Profractional can make scars less noticeable by smoothing their texture. Light-based treatments like BBL (Broadband Light) target darker pigment cells, which can lighten the coloration of a scar and reduce redness.
- Microneedling Collagen Induction Therapy: Microneedling devices like SkinPen® use tiny surgical-grade needles to create thousands of micro-injuries to the skin, stimulating collagen and elastin production, and healing firmer and smoother. A series of microneedling treatments can result in a soft, flat Tummy Tuck scar that blends well into the surrounding skin.
- Permanent Cosmetics or Tattoo: Patients may choose to cover their Tummy Tuck scar with a tattoo, but they will need to wait until their scar is fully healed, about a year, before they can have one.
Tummy Tuck Scar Healing Stages
Tummy tucks are a popular procedure for removing unwanted fat and revealing the abdominal area. However, patients often worry about the potential scarring, which can become more noticeable in the early healing stages before they fade. Abdominoplasty scars typically appear as horizontal lines on the lower abdomen, between the pubis and belly button. They typically span from hip to hip but could extend farther depending on the tummy tuck method.
The first healing stage after a tummy tuck is scar formation, which takes approximately one month. The body starts producing collagen to mend the broken tissue, filling in gaps and sealing the wound. This process takes approximately one month, during which the linear scar becomes pinker in color. Over the next few months, new collagen will develop, causing the already formed scar to appear redder and lumpier. The collagen-production stage can take between three to six months.
One year post-tummy tuck, the collagen on the scar matures, causing the scar to become thinner, smoother, and lighter. It takes a year to mature, but it will progressively lighten once it does. Patients with light-colored skin are prone to bright red scars, while those with more melanated flesh might develop darker ones. As the scars heal, they fade into a lighter pink or silvery grey color.
Irregular tummy tuck scars can develop, including hypertrophic and keloid scars. Hypertrophic scars are raised, thickened scars that usually do not extend more than four millimeters above the skin’s surface. Keloid scars are large, shiny round nodules that can appear at the incision site and surrounding areas a few months to a year after surgery. Statistics show that patients between the ages of 20 and 30, those with a family history of atypical scarring, and those with darker skin are more susceptible to getting hypertrophic and keloid scars.
To prevent abnormal scarring, patients should care for their wound properly, avoid using hydrogen peroxide or alcohol, and keep the scar out of the sun for the first six months after the operation. Plastic surgeons will provide additional instructions on how to take care of the surgical incision after abdominoplasty to prevent irregular scarring.
