What causes bat wings?
Nothing stays tight forever. Just think of it. The cushions on your couch — when you bought it, they were firm and supportive. Now, they’re sunken and uneven. Your parking brake in your car — it was tight the last time it was adjusted. Now, you have to pull it all the way up, and the car can still slip.
Same deal with the skin on your upper arms. As you age, particularly if you’ve gained and lost a good deal of weight, the elasticity in the skin and support tissue of your upper arms has gone the way of the Passenger Pigeon. Now your arms flap when you move them, connoting images of the dreaded bat wings.
And, while bat wings are fine for the Dark Knight and his ilk, they have no place in your life. Fortunately, an arm lift from the team at Elite Plastic Surgery can be back firmer, more contoured arms.
Who should get an arm lift?
If your loose, flappy upper arms bother you, it’s probably time for an arm lift. If you avoid wearing sleeveless blouses more than a seal avoids watching Shark Week, it may be time for an arm lift.
Generally, you could have the procedure if you have loose, excess, or sagging skin on your upper arms that doesn’t respond to exercise. Or, if you’ve lost lots of weight, yet the excess skin on your upper arms didn’t go away with the weight, an arm lift can help.
The procedure
The goal of an arm lift (also known as Brachioplasty) is to eliminate the excess skin and fat from the upper arms, creating a more contoured appearance. An incision is made on either the bottom of your arm or the backside. It runs usually from the elbow to the armpit. Our surgeons then remove excess fat, tighten the underlying muscles, and remove excess skin. When the procedure is complete, you’ll go home with compression garments around your upper arms to help them adapt to their new smaller, tighter contour.
Recovery
Most arm lift patients return to work after one week, and can resume normal exercise and activity within a month. Scars will fade over the next 18 months to where they will not be overly noticeable.
Tired of those bat wings? Leave them to the winged vigilante. Let the team at Elite Plastic Surgery give you back your younger, more contoured arms. Call us at (616) 459-1907 to set up a consultation.
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