Tummy tuck cost: from €7,000 and what's included

A tummy tuck removes excess skin and fat from the abdomen and brings the rectus muscles back together when they have separated, which is known as diastasis. It is common after pregnancy or major weight loss, and explains why a tummy can still bulge even when you are slim. The muscles are stitched together from the inside (plication) and, if needed, reinforced with a mesh. The belly button almost always has to be repositioned.

It is major surgery. It takes between two and four hours, is done under general anesthetic and you stay in the hospital for one or two nights. In Barcelona we operate at Clínica Diagonal and in Madrid at Hospital San Francisco de Asís, always with a qualified anesthesiologist. That is why its price is nothing like that of small-volume liposuction or a non-surgical treatment for the abdomen.

What is included

• Specialist surgeon's fees
• Fees for the rest of the medical team
• Materials specified in the quote
• Operating room and a hospital stay of 1 or 2 nights
• Anesthesia
• Stay in a private room if needed
• Medication during your hospital stay
• Wound care with the nursing team
• Follow-up visits with the specialist
• Pre-op tests (blood tests, ECG, X-ray, etc.)

Wound care includes removing the drains when they are used, which is not always the case. Operations carried out in Barcelona also include a session of the Synapta® protocol, designed to make recovery more comfortable. If you are traveling from elsewhere, the pre-op tests are scheduled on the same day as the consultation to save you a trip.

Your follow-up visits are with the same surgeon who operated. The first ones are close together, for wound care and the drains, and then they are spaced out.

What is not included

• Assessments or clearance from other specialists, if needed
• Medication after you leave the hospital
• Post-surgical garments (compression garments, bands, etc.), unless specified
• Additional recovery treatments (lymphatic drainage, physiotherapy, laser, etc.)
• Costs arising from medical complications not attributable to the surgery itself
• Further operations or touch-up surgery not planned at the outset
• Unplanned additional hospital stays
• Travel, accommodation or meals for the patient and companions
• Medical leave forms, certificates or additional paperwork
• Any material or procedure not expressly specified in the quote

Of the items on this list, the one you will notice most is the compression garment, which is worn for four to eight weeks. It is also worth allowing for time off work: people with office jobs usually go back after two to four weeks, and physical work needs longer.

Because not every abdomen needs the same thing. At the consultation we look at how much fat there is on the abdomen and flanks, whether the muscles have separated and how much loose skin there is. That decides the technique, and the technique drives the price:

• Mini tummy tuck, when the main problem is muscle separation and there is little excess skin.
• Full tummy tuck, when the muscle separation comes with a lot of excess skin. The scar runs from hip to hip, at the level of the pubic area.
• Tummy tuck with liposuction (lipoabdominoplasty), when there is also excess fat on the abdomen and flanks.

Diastasis repair, time in the operating room and whether one or two nights in the hospital are needed also count. After very large weight loss or a gastric bypass, a vertical scar or a circumferential tummy tuck may be needed, which is a different operation with a different quote.

The planned number of nights is stated in the quote. Once you have it, the price does not change and no new items are added.

After pregnancy it is common to want to correct both. A mommy makeover combines a tummy tuck and breast surgery in one operation, with a single anesthetic and a single recovery. It starts at €12,000 (VAT not included), takes between four and six hours and needs one or two nights in the hospital. We recommend waiting at least a year after your last pregnancy, once your weight is stable.

The skin that is removed does not come back and the muscle tightening is not lost either. The result lasts as long as your weight is stable, and moderate weight changes do not usually affect it. What can undo it is another pregnancy, which stretches the skin and muscles again. So if you are planning more children, it usually makes sense to wait before having surgery.

The first consultation costs €80, which is deducted from the cost of surgery if you go ahead. It lasts about an hour. The surgeon examines your abdomen, reviews your medical history and weight and explains which technique is right for you. If you cannot come in, it can be done by video call with the surgeon who would operate on you, for €50, which is also deducted. The consultation is with the same surgeon who will operate, and who signs the quote.

A tummy tuck can be financed over up to 48 months, and the first 12 months are interest-free. Financing is available from €1,000 to €21,000, and the account holder can be the patient or a family member. The monthly payment is worked out at the consultation based on the fixed quote.