Brachioplasty After Massive weight Loss in Raleigh, NC*

Massive weight loss whether achieved through diet and exercise or through bariatric surgery results in potential major changes in the body with excess skin and residual fat deposits. Most patients have several concerns including excess abdominal skin and fat, saggy breasts, excess skin and fat of the use as well as loose excess tissue of the upper arms. Brachioplasty addresses the loose skin and excess fat of the upper arms. This condition is often called bat wing deformity- for obvious reason- as the loose skin looks like the wings of a bat. This 45-year-old woman had massive weight loss after bariatric surgery with a loss of well over 200 pounds. She had many areas of concern and initially had Dr. Lyle perform a circumferential abdominoplasty. Four months later,planned staged surgery was recommended to address her other concerns and the second procedure was a brachioplasty and breast lift. She had very large excess deposits of her arms. She had major improvements after brachioplasty. Brachioplasty is often combined with mastopexy. Generally, brachioplasty recovery is pretty rapid although compressive arm sleeves are generally recommended for at least 6-8 weeks postoperative and management of the scars with a variety of modalities such as silicone tape or scar creams is necessary to achieve the best outcome. Care must be taken to avoid over resection which can lead to a disproportionate appearance of the arms and unfavorable scars.