7322 E 91st St, Tulsa, OK 74133 · 918-392-0880 · tulsasurgicalarts.com
Oklahoma Surgical Arts · 12400 Saint Andrew’s Dr, Oklahoma City, OK 73120 · 405-751-0042
Body Contouring After Major Weight Loss
Plain-language patient guide
What this surgery is
After a large weight loss, skin often cannot shrink back. Hanging skin can cause rashes, hygiene problems, and clothing trouble. Body contouring is a family of surgeries that remove that extra skin.
Parts include a tummy tuck or lower body lift, arm lift, thigh lift, and breast reshaping. These surgeries are staged. That means two or more separate operations spaced months apart.
What happens during it
You get anesthesia (medicine that makes you sleep) for each stage.
The surgeon removes rolls of extra skin along planned lines.
The deeper tissue is lifted and anchored so the result holds.
The cuts are closed in layers. Drains are often used for a few days.
Each stage takes several hours. An overnight stay is common.
Main risks
Every surgery has risks. Here are the main ones for this surgery, in plain words. We will go over all of them with you in person.
Wound healing problems are the most common issue. Long cuts and thinner tissue heal slower.
Fluid buildup under the skin (a seroma) that may need draining.
Long scars. They are the trade for removing the skin. They fade but never vanish.
Blood clots. Early walking after each stage lowers the risk.
Low protein or low vitamin levels slow healing. We check labs and fix them before surgery.
Bleeding. Some bleeding can need another trip to the operating room.
Infection. Signs are spreading redness, warmth, pus, or fever.
Scars. Every cut leaves a scar. Most fade over a year. Some stay raised or wide.
Numb skin near the cuts. Feeling usually returns over months. Small areas can stay numb.
Blood clots in the legs. A clot can travel to the lungs. That is an emergency.
Problems from anesthesia (the medicine that makes you sleep). These are rare in healthy people.
Uneven results. The two sides of the body are never a perfect match.
The need for another surgery to fix a problem or improve the result.
What recovery is like
Before surgery
Your weight should be stable for about a year. Good protein intake matters.
First week
Sore and slow. Walk a little every few hours. Help at home is a must.
Two weeks
Drains usually out. Many return to desk work.
Six weeks
Full activity for most people, until the next planned stage.
One year
Scars fade. Results from all stages come together.
When to call us right away
Call us at 918-392-0880, day or night, if:
A growing bulge of fluid under the skin, or a wound edge that turns dark.
You have chest pain or trouble breathing. Call 911 first, then call us.
One leg swells, or one calf hurts more than the other.
You have a fever over 101 degrees.
Blood soaks a bandage and does not slow down with gentle pressure.
Redness spreads out from a cut, or you see pus.
Your pain gets much worse instead of better.
A wound pulls open, or stitches come apart.
Approved for patient use — released under the clinical review of the Tulsa Surgical Arts surgical team, August 2026.