Partial abdominoplasty may take an hour or two. An incision just above the pubic area is used to remove excess skin and fat from the middle and lower abdomen. Most commonly, the surgeon will make a long incision from hipbone to hipbone, ,just above the pubic area. A second incision is made to free the navel from surrounding tissue. With partial abdominoplasty, the incision is much shorter and the navel may not be moved, although it may be pulled into an unnatural shape as the skin is tightened and stitched.
Skin is separated from the abdominal wall all the way up to the ribs.
Next, the surgeon separates the skin from the abdominal wall all the way up to your ribs and lifts a large skin flap to reveal the vertical muscles in your abdomen. These muscles are tightened by pulling them close together and stitching them into their new position. This provides a firmer abdominal wall and narrows the waistline. The surgeon draws underlying muscle and tissue together and stitches them, thereby narrowing the waistline and strengthening the abdominal wall. The skin flap is then stretched down and the extra skin is removed.