Arm Lift / Brachioplasty Surgery

Arm Lift is also known as Brachioplasty Surgery. The operation can remove excess skin and fat, leaving the upper arms with a slimmer, more pleasing and youthful contour. As we age, our upper arm skin often becomes loose and flabby. This is sometimes referred to as “bingo wings” or “bat wings”.

An arm lift will renew your confidence to wear short sleeved tops again without feeling self-conscious. Brachioplasty, or upper arm reduction surgery, involves reducing this skin through an incision that runs on the inner part of the upper arm all the way from the elbow to the axilla, often crossing into the armpit. Liposuction may also be used at the same time to remove excess fat and to help re-shape your arms, or liposuction alone can be an effective scarless way to reduce your upper arms and reshaping it dramatically.

Many people develop excess skin in the inner aspect of their upper arms, as part of a normal aging process, but particularly if they lose significant amounts of weight, or the arms are just larger in proportion to the rest of your body. Surgery for arm lift / brachioplasty is performed if:

Arm Lift surgery can be performed on a large variety of patients including normal weight patients who simply need a little tightening. As time goes on and gravity takes her toll, the extra skin might become bothersome. This creates difficulties wearing clothing that reveals the arms – you then tend to conceal this area by wearing long sleeved garments. If you have lost a significant amount of weight and have stabilized your weight and do not have any serious medical problems, the excess skin and fat in the upper arms (also called “bat wings”) may worry you. An upper arm lift procedure can then add considerably to your daily comfort and improve your appearance. During the consultation, you will be asked about the results you would like to achieve from your arm lift surgery. This will help us to understand your expectations and determine whether they realistically can be achieved.

There are a number of different techniques used to treat the problems with the upper arms depending on the distribution of the fatty tissue and skin quality.

For patients who have upper arm fat excess, with good skin without stretch marks and no skin excess, liposuction alone can be very effective. It is extremely good at removing the fatty issue of the arms, with the additional advantage of not leaving any visible scars. The skin has to be elastic enough to re-drape and give you a balanced result. Dr. Stasch will assess during the consultation if you are a good candidate for arm lift liposuction surgery.

For patients with minimal or moderate skin excess located near the armpit, an improvement can be attained through a scar limited to the armpit area / axilla. This is often combined with liposuction. The advantage of leaving the scar purely hidden within the armpit is that it is well concealed. However, if you do have excess skin tissue extending down the arm towards your elbow, this form of excision may not fully treat the whole arm.

For patients who present with a lot of upper arm excess, as in the case of most weight loss patients, tissue must be removed through a scar that runs from the elbow area to the armpit. The advantage of this procedure is that it is very effective at reducing the amount of skin and fat all the way down to your elbow. The disadvantage is a fine scar extending down the inner aspect of your arm. We will aim to conceal this scar in the inner aspect of your arm as it lies against your body so that it is not overtly visible from either the front or back, however, it will be visible if you raise your arm. Generally, the scar in your inner arm area tends to settle well with time.

After Liposuction, results will be seen immediately while swelling tends to reduce during the following weeks. After an upper arm lift, the excess skin in the area is unlikely to return unless you do gain then lose a significant amount of weight. Once the excess skin has been removed, the appearance of your upper arms will be tighter and more harmonious, allowing you to wear closer-fitting clothes and making you less self-conscious about the appearance of this region. Most scars are inconspicuous when raising the arms. Ideally, the scars will heal well over time and will then be well concealed. Any scar goes through a maturation process, which takes a year to complete.

Whilst these operations are generally safe in the hands of a qualified and experienced plastic surgeon and regarded to be highly successful, there are, as with any operation, risks involved and the possibility of complications that patients need to consider. Postoperative pain will vary from person to person, but this is not considered a very painful procedure. The average patient undergoing an upper arm reduction procedure will usually require a few days of oral pain medication to treat discomfort and a feeling of tightness.

Smokers are strongly advised to discontinue smoking several weeks prior to surgery and after the operation, as smoking increases the risks of complications and delays wound healing by altering blood circulation in the skin. You can reduce your risks of complications by closely following our instructions before and after the surgery.

Brachioplasty cost in Kenya starts from KES 650,000, which depends on your circumstances and the technique we will perform.

For more information on arm lift costs, we invite you to book a consultation with Dr. Stasch. During this confidential appointment, we can discover more about what you would like to achieve and find out if arm lift surgery is right for you.