Will Rib Removal Be More Effective Than Rib XScar?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am very interested in your rib removal surgery. I just had RibXscar done in December. Had 4 ribs on each side fractured. Corseted for 6 months total when I was initially told 3. Began my recovery first with a size 18 and downsized to a size 16 corset. With being fully committed to the corseting i still got significant amount of inches back. So I’m ready to a more serious procedure. What is the recovery for rib removal? Is this surgery as painful as RibXscar? You mentioned corseting as well. Can you explain your corseting process. I am an athlete and extremely lean. 14% body fat as a female and train twice a day. I understand I won’t be working out during recovery but when I resume to my normal workout schedule months later. Will it affect my results? And are these results permanent?

A:The first and most important step in considering rib removal surgery after rib fracture surgery is to obtain a 3-D CT scan to evaluate the osteotomy sites and the shape of the ribs. Only then can it be determined if rib removal surgery can produce a better outcome. It is intuitively obvious that when you remove bone and muscle you’re likely to get a better and more sustained response than if you just reshape the tissues that you have.

Unlike rib fracture surgery in rib removal surgery the purpose of waist garment shaping is to help with swelling as well as to compress the soft tissues down shaped down in the healing process. It is a supplemental part of the procedure unlike in rib fracture surgery where it nis an absolutely component of making whatever result can be achieved by tissue modifications.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Plastic Surgeon