Your tummy tuck belly button may be a small part of the body, but it does contribute to your overall look. That is why it’s important to make sure that your navel is in good hands with the right tummy tuck plastic surgeon.
How a Tummy Tuck Affects the Belly Button
Since the belly button sits right on your abdomen, it will be inevitably affected by a full tummy tuck.
During the procedure, your plastic surgeon makes a small horizontal incision above the pubic bone and around the belly button to free it from the surrounding skin. Each belly button is attached to a small stalk, which is also removed from the skin and remains attached to your exterior belly button.
Your plastic surgeon then pulls your skin taut and tightens it, ensuring that your stomach is completely flat and free from excess skin.
Once it’s done and all your excess skin is removed, your plastic surgeon creates a new opening for your belly button. It is reattached and repositioned on your stomach so that it still looks natural.
If correctly done, your belly button will look natural and much better than your original one.
Post-Op Tummy Tuck Belly Button Shapes
Because your belly button is repositioned during a full tummy tuck, you will develop a scar around your tummy tuck.
Your plastic surgeon will give you either a round or an inverted U scar. A round scar will look like a donut or bull’s eye in the center of your belly. This may look unnatural, giving away the fact that you recently had a tummy tuck.
Instead, plastic surgeons should opt for the inverted U scar, wherein the skin on top of the belly button looks like an inverted U because it hangs slightly over the hole of the belly button that’s attached to the abdominal wall. The bottom slants downward since the skin is hanging away from it.
The inverted U scar duplicates the look of a natural tummy tuck belly button. To get this look, your plastic surgeon should make a half circle incision above the belly button so that it will heal nicely.
Belly Button Reconstruction
Also known as umbilicoplasty, belly button reconstruction is often performed in conjunction with a tummy tuck, although it can also be done as a standalone procedure.
It involves repositioning your belly button to a natural-looking location and making it appear more aesthetically pleasing. After all, the navel may be a small part of the body, but it does contribute to your overall look.
In a tummy tuck belly button reconstruction, your plastic surgeon creates a round depression that’s neither too shallow nor too deep. It should be more horizontal than vertical to make it more natural-looking.
To aid your surgeon in providing you with the perfect tummy tuck belly button, you can bring photos of particular belly buttons that you like. It will help your plastic surgeon understand your aesthetic goals.
