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Postabdominoplasty cutaneous sensibility losses improve over time

Researchers found significant improvements in superficial tactile sensibility involving the supraumbilical, infraumibilical and midline infraincisional areas occurred over time in patients who underwent abdominoplasty.

Thirty patients who underwent abdominoplasty by a single surgeon between January 2004 and December 2013 were divided into three groups of 10 based on time from surgery to sensibility evaluation: 0 to 12 months (short-term), 12 to 24 months (intermediate-term) and greater than 24 months (long-term).

Patients were given a diagram in which the abdomen was divided into 12 areas and were instructed to indicate the areas in which they felt sustained changes in sensibility following the surgery that were still present at the time of evaluation. In addition, the patients were asked to specify any sensory changes, such as paralgesia or hyperaphia, that were present in any of the 12 areas.

Postoperatively, 17 (56.7%) patients reported having some variation of abdominal cutaneous sensibility, with supraumbilical, infraumbilical and midline infraincisional areas reported most commonly. Among these patients, 82.4% were indifferent toward this outcome, according to the researchers.

In the short-term, intermediate-term and long-term follow-up groups, 44.4%, 12.5% and 14.3% respectively, reported any persistent sensibility changes in the supraumbilical area.

Patients who were beyond 24 months postoperatively had significantly improved sensibility compared with patients within the short-term or intermediate-term follow-up groups, according to the researchers. - by Abigail Sutton

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.