Ten Years of Outpatient Abdominoplasty in Los Angeles Safe and Effective



Tummy tuck surgery, known medically as abdominoplasty, is growing in popularity along with almost all other types of plastic surgery. And, just as for other procedures, patients are seeking an increasingly comfortable and convenient experience. Many patients in Los Angeles prefer to have tummy tuck surgery in outpatient surgery centers rather than in a hospital, preferring a relaxed, low stress setting with reduced costs and no sick patients.

Until recently, however, most Los Angeles abdominoplasty surgeries had been performed in local hospitals. Therefore, there was little data available on the safety of outpatient tummy tucks. Dr. Grant Stevens and his colleagues at Marina Plastic Surgery in Southern California, having offered outpatient abdominoplasty in the Los Angeles area for ten years, decided to conduct a study of their patients's experiences to make critical information available to others. Dr. Michelle Spring, Fellow at Marina Plastic Surgery, presented their study of 519 surgeries performed in at Marina Outpatient Surgery Center to determine whether the procedure is as safe and effective performed on an outpatient basis as in a hospital.

The 519 patients represented ten years of procedures by Dr. Stevens and Dr. Stoker performed in a single outpatient surgery center. The patient population constituted a typical sample, including men and women of a variety of ages ranging from 19 to 74. Eighty-eight percent of patients had what'ss considered a full procedure; the remainder had what'ss known as a floating or mini-abdominoplasty. Seventy-one percent had liposuction in conjunction with their surgery. Twenty-five percent had another surgical procedure, such as a breast enhancement or facelift while having a tummy tuck or abdominoplasty.

The review team examined each patient'ss chart in detail to assess complication and revision rates. Specific conditions that can result from the surgery were recorded, including: deaths, venous thrombemboli (clots), wound dehiscence (incision separation), infection, seroma (swelling), hematoma (blood collection under the skin) and unacceptable scarring.

No deaths occurred among the 519 patients. One pulmonary embolus, later found to be associated with a coagulation abnormality, was diagnosed and treated successfully. One patient was hospitalized for blood loss stemming from a hematoma, and another required blood transfusion during hematoma draining. Both these patients were also treated successfully.

The most common post-operative complications recorded were: seroma (10.6%), unacceptable scars (7.9%), and superficial incision dehiscence (5.6%). Less than 10% of the patient population required revision surgery.

These complication rates are in line with the published literature detailing in-patient surgery complication rates, said Dr. Stevens. This study has demonstrated that, when performed in a modern, accredited surgical center, outpatient abdominoplasties are just as safe and effective as those performed in a hospital.

Dr. Stoker added, Given the choice, our patients very rarely elect to have have their surgery in a hospital. They find the environment to be more impersonal, more clinical, and more stressful than they'sre looking for. That'ss why we developed the Marina Outpatient Surgery Center, to give our patients a setting that'ss both safe and serene. With this study of ten years of procedures in our center, we can now prove what we already knew--the outpatient option is safe.

For more information on the study, contact Dr. David Stoker or Dr. Grant Stevens, Medical Director, at Marina Plastic Surgery in Los Angeles. Call (866) 588-7507 or visit www.losangelestummytuck.com.

Dr. Grant Stevens is a California board-certified plastic surgeon and the Medical Director of Marina Plastic Surgery Associates in Marina del Rey and Palos Verdes. He specializes in cosmetic plastic surgery and has been named one of America'ss Best Physicians by his colleagues in The Guide to Top Doctors. He is an active member at Centinella-Freeman Marina Hospital where he is the past Chairman of the Department of Surgery, the past Chairman of the Liposuction Committee, and the past co-director of the Breast Center. He is also on staff at St. John'ss Medical Center and the Marina Outpatient Surgery Center. Dr. Stevens is an Associate Clinical Professor at the USC Medical School and Director of the American Society of Aesthetic Surgery-approved Marina Aesthetic Surgery Fellowship.





Ten Years of Outpatient Abdominoplasty in Los Angeles Safe and Effective