Hexagonal Skin Excision in Lipoabdominoplasty Aiming for a Smaller Scar and Efficient Waist

Standard abdominoplasty scars may extend beyond the boundaries of the abdomen. Contemporary styles of body exposure and bathing suits demand that those incisions be hidden inside the “bikini line.” Although a smaller incision used for a mini abdominoplasty might be confined to the abdomen, larger incisions to remove massive amounts of fat and skin excess from the abdomen routinely require extensions toward the groin or iliac areas. Preoperative marking of the incision in an abdominoplasty procedure plays a key role in the shape, length, and position of the resulting scar. Undermining, traction, and resection of redundant tissue also influence these outcomes; therefore, we aim to standardize the abdominoplasty excision pattern. A uniform hexagon design for skin excision was used in 22 patients, with measures that may be used universally, for all patients with moderate skin redundancy. The design was applied successfully to decrease the ultimate scar width, and asymmetry and increase waist definition. All patients’ wounds healed uneventfully. The scar width in all patients did not cross the mid-axillary line. The scar was shorter than the standard abdominoplasty scar that may extend beyond the mid-axillary line. This hexagonal pattern of skin excision provides a quick and consistent technique for skin excision and resultant shorter scar.