Do you always avoid wearing anything sleeveless? When you wave, do your arms wave back at you? As you age, your skin loses elasticity; this can be especially noticeable after a significant loss of weight. If the excessive amount of sagging skin under your arms is causing you to reconsider what you are wearing or makes you self-conscious about raising your arms, then you can wave goodbye to those aging arms with brachioplasty.
Brachioplasty, more commonly referred to as an arm lift, can help rid you of unwanted sagging skin under the arm. There are various ways to accomplish a lift under the arms including liposuction, a hidden inner arm lift (mini-brachioplasty), or a traditional arm lift. Various factors including goals, skin elasticity, the amount of fatty tissue, the location of loose skin, the amount of weight loss, age, lifestyle, and overall health will affect which procedure will give you the results you desire. The deciding factor on what procedure is right for you should be determined between yourself and your board-certified plastic surgeon who has expertise in arm lifting procedures.
Liposuction
Liposuction, while not technically considered an arm lift is a great way to achieve some improved contour if you have no skin laxity, but this must be done very carefully to prevent rippling of the skin long term. The liposuction arm lift is good for a younger patient who has minimal fat reduction needs and great skin elasticity. Benefits include small incisions, minimal downtime, and it is completed on an outpatient basis. Because the incision is minimal, you should have no problem wearing whatever top you choose.
Hidden Inner Arm Lift
The hidden inner arm lift (mini-brachioplasty) is a step up in the scale of arm lifts. The hidden arm lift is an excellent procedure to help remove a modest amount of loose skin and fat from the upper under arms that occur due to the normal aging process and weight loss. The procedure is performed by making a small incision, typically within the armpit, where excess skin and fat is removed. This technique is more involved than liposuction, thus resulting in more bruising, swelling, and needed recovery time. Typically, with a mini arm lift, you can resume work and daily activity within three days, but not full exercise for 3 weeks. Because the incision is made within the crease of the arm pit, scarring can be hidden, and you should have no problem wearing sleeveless tops.
Traditional Extended Arm Lift
The traditional extended arm lift is another step up in the progression of arm lifts. A traditional arm lift removes fat and skin from under the arm all the way down to your elbow. Depending on your needs, one of the various forms of the traditional arm lift in addition to liposuction can be used to give you dramatic results. The traditional arm lift is used to remove moderate to high amounts of fat and excess skin from the entire upper arm area from the armpit to the elbow. Considering that this procedure is more invasive than liposuction and the hidden arm lift, 10-12 days will be needed for recovery. Depending on the length of the incision necessary to achieve the desired results, an elbow-length or short-sleeve top could be worn to cover any scarring.
When making the decision to wave goodbye to aging arms it is best to seek consultation with your board-certified plastic surgeon. During this consultation, a discussion will be had about which procedure will give you the best results and what recovery will be needed. My advice with any sort of surgical body modification has been, and continues to be, to always seek out an experienced board-certified plastic surgeon who is an expert in the field and who can show you proof of exceptional results.
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