COSMETIC SURGERY | BODY
Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)
When diet and training have done all they can and the loose skin or the bulge remains, a tummy tuck removes what exercise can't and repairs the muscles beneath. Consultant plastic surgeon led, with the honest conversation first.
Hospital stay
day case or overnight
Surgery
2.5 to 3.5 hours
Back to work
2 to 3 weeks
Final result
6 to 12 months
Is this you
Most people who come to us for a tummy tuck say one of these things:
No amount of core work touches the loose skin.
Three pregnancies, and my muscles never knitted back together.
I lost five stone. My skin didn't get the memo.
I train, I eat well, and the bulge is still there.
I plan every outfit around my stomach.
I want my core back, not just the look.
Loose skin doesn't shrink and separated muscles don't knit themselves back together; no plank fixes either. That's not a discipline failure, it's anatomy, and it's exactly what this operation exists to correct.
THE OPERATION, EXPLAINED
What a tummy tuck involves
A tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) is surgery to remove excess skin and fat from the lower abdomen and tighten weakened or separated abdominal muscles (diastasis recti). It's most often chosen after pregnancy, significant weight loss or with age, when loose skin and muscle separation persist despite diet and exercise. Surgery takes 2.5 to 3.5 hours under general anaesthetic, as a day case or with one overnight stay.
This is an operation about function as well as form: repairing the muscle wall improves core strength and posture, not just the contour, and removing the excess skin ends the chafing, the tucking and the wardrobe planning. Stretch marks below the navel often go with the skin that carries them. The scar runs low, hip to hip, placed to sit beneath underwear and swimwear.
This is an operation about function as well as form: repairing the muscle wall improves core strength and posture, not just the contour, and removing the excess skin ends the chafing, the tucking and the wardrobe planning. Stretch marks below the navel often go with the skin that carries them. The scar runs low, hip to hip, placed to sit beneath underwear and swimwear.
HONEST SUITABILITY
Who a tummy tuck is right for
Good candidates share a pattern: loose abdominal skin, a muscle separation you can feel, or both, persisting at a stable weight despite genuine effort. The honest screens are firm here because this is one of the larger cosmetic operations. Your weight should be stable and near where you intend to stay, because significant change after surgery undoes the result; where weight loss is still in progress, the honest advice is to finish first, and we'll say so. Smoking measurably raises the risk of healing problems in this operation and is discussed frankly. If more children are planned, timing matters, since pregnancy stretches what surgery has repaired. And your expectations, including the hip-to-hip scar, are examined honestly before anything is booked.
If a consultation ends with "not yet" or "liposuction alone would serve you better", that's the advice you'll hear.
If a consultation ends with "not yet" or "liposuction alone would serve you better", that's the advice you'll hear.
Apex Medical
Expert care for the
change you choose
WHICH TUMMY TUCK?
Five operations, one honest recommendation
For the lower belly alone: a shorter scar, minimal muscle repair, and a smaller recovery. Right for the right candidate, and honestly limited: if your muscles have separated or skin sits above the navel, a mini will disappoint, and you'll hear that here first.
The standard operation: excess skin removed, the muscle wall repaired from breastbone to pubic bone, and the navel repositioned to sit naturally on the new contour. The workhorse for post-pregnancy and post-weight-loss change.
For severe skin excess, removing skin vertically as well as horizontally. A bigger scar trade-off, discussed openly, in exchange for a correction the standard operation can't achieve.
Liposuction of the flanks or upper abdomen alongside the tuck, refining the whole contour rather than just the front. Often the difference between a flat abdomen and a balanced one.
Post-bariatric and major weight loss cases can involve substantial excess skin and soft tissue, sometimes needing circumferential surgery. Planned honestly as its own undertaking, with recovery framed to match.
The operation you need is decided by three findings: how much skin, how much separation, and where. Everything else is preference, and preference comes second to what your anatomy will actually reward.
Consultant-led care
Operated on by
the surgeon you meet
A tummy tuck is a reconstruction as much as a refinement: the muscle repair is real structural surgery, and the difference between a flat result and a natural one is judgement exercised across the whole torso.
At Apex, abdominoplasty is planned and performed personally by Mr Kuen Yeow Chin, Consultant Plastic Surgeon and founder of Apex, whose reconstructive practice underpins the muscle repair at the heart of this operation. The surgeon you meet at consultation is the surgeon who operates, and the same surgeon reviews your result at every follow-up.
At Apex, abdominoplasty is planned and performed personally by Mr Kuen Yeow Chin, Consultant Plastic Surgeon and founder of Apex, whose reconstructive practice underpins the muscle repair at the heart of this operation. The surgeon you meet at consultation is the surgeon who operates, and the same surgeon reviews your result at every follow-up.
Your clinical team:
Mr. Kuen Yeow Chin
Consultant Plastic Surgeon & Skin Cancer Specialist
Reconstructive surgery and advanced skin cancer treatment
Sarah Millward
Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist
Skin checks, mole screening, and early skin cancer detection.
Laura O'Hare
Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist
Skin lesion care, post-surgical recovery, and private dermatology services.
Jackie Brighton
Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist
Expert mole checks, lesion assessment, and aftercare for skin cancer patients.
Jennifer Povey
Skin Cancer Nurse Specialist
Skin care treatment, photodynamic therapy (PDT), cryotheraphy, and personalised patient care.
Mr. Kuen Yeow Chin
Consultant Plastic Surgeon & Skin Cancer Specialist
Reconstructive surgery and advanced skin cancer treatment
YOUR CARE, STEP BY STEP
How tummy tuck
surgery works at Apex
Five steps, two of them before anyone operates: an honest consultation, then time to think. This is one of the bigger decisions on this site, and it's treated like one.
1
Consultation
Assessment of skin laxity, muscle separation and fat distribution; the mini, full or extended question answered honestly; downtime, scars, risks and long-term results explained plainly; a written quote.
2
Two weeks to think
Cooling-off as standard; the quote holds.
3
Pre-operative assessment
Health screening, medication review, smoking cessation as advised, and weight stability confirmed.
4
Surgery day
General anaesthetic, 2.5 to 3.5 hours; home the same day or after one night, in a compression garment, walking gently the same day.
5
Recovery and review
Drains (if used) out within the first weeks; desk work from two to three weeks; the garment for six weeks; light exercise from four to six weeks; the contour developing over months, with the final result judged at six to twelve, reviewed with your surgeon throughout.
Transparent Pricing
Tummy Tuck Pricing
Fixed, transparent pricing with no hidden extras. Your exact quote is confirmed in writing at consultation, and it holds through your two-week cooling-off period.
Tummy Tuck (Abdominoplasty)
All-inclusive: consultant-led surgical care, hospital and anaesthetic fees, personalised aftercare, compression garment guidance and all follow-up appointments. Confirmed in writing before you decide anything.
from £7,200
Your final quote reflects the type of tummy tuck planned and whether liposuction or muscle repair is included, and is always confirmed in writing before you book.
ONGOING CARE
Recovery, honestly paced
Week one brings swelling, bruising and a distinctive tightness through the repaired core; you'll sleep slightly elevated and walk slowly and gently from day one, because early movement is part of the safety plan, not a breach of it.
Weeks two to three, swelling and discomfort ease, drains (where used) come out, and light desk work returns.
Weeks four to six, light exercise resumes, scars begin to fade, and the compression garment continues its quiet work.
From three months the contour is visibly yours; the final result, as swelling fully resolves and the scar matures, is a six-to-twelve-month judgement. Core strength and posture improve as the repair settles in, and your aftercare plan puts every stage in writing, with consultant-led support throughout.
Weeks two to three, swelling and discomfort ease, drains (where used) come out, and light desk work returns.
Weeks four to six, light exercise resumes, scars begin to fade, and the compression garment continues its quiet work.
From three months the contour is visibly yours; the final result, as swelling fully resolves and the scar matures, is a six-to-twelve-month judgement. Core strength and posture improve as the repair settles in, and your aftercare plan puts every stage in writing, with consultant-led support throughout.
Where to find us
Consultant-led care at Berkshire Grove Hospital
Apex Medical is based at Berkshire Grove Hospital, Grove House, Waltham Road, White Waltham, Maidenhead SL6 3TN, with clinics also at the Parkside Suite. Patients travel to us from Maidenhead, Windsor, Reading, Bracknell and Slough, and from across Berkshire, Surrey, Oxfordshire and London, for consultant-led care in a regulated private hospital without long waiting times. On-site parking is available.
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:30pm · Saturday by appointment only · Sunday closed Call 020 3871 5898
Opening hours: Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:30pm · Saturday by appointment only · Sunday closed Call 020 3871 5898
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about tummy tuck surgery at Apex Medical
From £7,200, including consultant-led surgical care, hospital and anaesthetic fees, aftercare and all follow-up appointments. Your written quote follows consultation and reflects the type of tummy tuck planned.
Liposuction removes fat only. A tummy tuck removes excess skin and tightens the muscle wall. They solve different problems and are often combined for the best result; your consultation will tell you honestly which yours is.
Expect tightness and pulling through the core at first rather than sharp pain, well managed with the medication you go home with. The tight feeling is the muscle repair doing its job, and it eases as you heal.
Yes: a low scar from hip to hip, placed to sit beneath underwear and swimwear. It fades substantially over months with proper care, and you'll see honest healed examples at consultation.
The common and temporary ones: bruising, swelling, tightness, and numbness around the abdomen that settles over time. The less common ones: infection, bleeding, fluid accumulation (seroma), delayed healing or skin necrosis (markedly higher in smokers), asymmetry, and blood clots, which early walking is specifically designed to guard against. Your surgeon names these plainly at consultation, with real numbers, and all surgery takes place in CQC-registered hospitals with consultant-led care throughout.
Yes, it's one of the most common reasons patients choose one, addressing both stretched skin and the muscle separation (diastasis recti) pregnancy can leave behind. If more children are planned, timing is discussed honestly, because pregnancy stretches what surgery has repaired.
An apron belly (pannus) is the fold of skin and tissue that hangs over the lower abdomen, often after major weight loss. Yes, it's removed as part of a tummy tuck, improving comfort and hygiene as well as contour.
Yes, at a stable weight with a healthy lifestyle. Future pregnancy or significant weight gain can change the result, which is why stability comes first in the honest consultation.
Most patients return to work within two to three weeks and light exercise at four to six. Full healing and the final contour take months, with the complete result at six to twelve, and your reviews run throughout.
Patient Stories.
In Our Patients' Own Words
BOOK A CONSULTATION
Finish what the hard work started
One consultation settles it: which operation your anatomy actually needs, what the scar and recovery honestly involve, and the cost in writing. Then two weeks to think, as standard.
Consultant-led private skin, hands and aesthetic care across Berkshire. Precise, caring and expert.