Hagopian Plastic Surgery: Thomas Hagopian, MD
99 Krog St. NE, Unit C110
Atlanta, GA 30307
Phone: (404) 885-8542
Tuesday–Friday: 8 a.m.–5 p.m.
Losing a significant amount of weight is an achievement worthy of celebrating. However, the skin often doesn’t “snap back” after weight loss, leaving you with loose, hanging skin on the abdomen, buttocks, and thighs that shrouds your new, slimmer body. Board-certified plastic surgeons and body contouring specialists Dr. Thomas Hagopian and Dr. Courtney Cripps can help you make the most of your hard-earned shape with a lower body lift at our Atlanta, Georgia, plastic surgery practice.
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VIEW PHOTOSA lower body lift removes redundant skin on the mid and lower body, making it one of the most comprehensive options for skin removal after weight loss or those who have skin laxity following lipedema surgery. This customized body contouring procedure improves skin tone and reveals smoother, firmer contours by combining a buttock lift, thigh lift, and an extended version of a tummy tuck.
Dr. Hagopian brings extensive experience in complex thigh lift surgery to lower body contouring, with approximately 80% of his thighplasty patients traveling from outside Atlanta for treatment. His approach combines liposuction to remove excess fat with an avulsion technique to separate and remove excess skin while helping preserve underlying blood vessels, connective tissue, and lymphatic channels.
While a body lift typically focuses on the excess skin, you can also sculpt away any underlying stubborn fat by combining your procedures with VASER® or SAFELipo® liposuction.
A 360 body lift, also called a circumferential body lift, removes excess skin around the entire midsection in a single, continuous procedure. This differs from treating the front and back separately, and may be a good fit for patients with excess skin extending around the full circumference of the torso. Our surgeons will discuss whether a circumferential approach or a staged combination of procedures is the better fit for your goals during your consultation.
You should be in general good health, not pregnant or planning to become pregnant, and at or near your ideal weight before pursuing lower body lift surgery. You should have maintained a stable weight for at least 6 months, and your body mass index (BMI) must be lower than 40.
As a leading expert in body contouring and lipedema care, Dr. Hagopian is known for his compassion and exceptional results. For combinations targeting the lower body, Dr. Hagopian typically stages surgeries over two procedures. Popular options include:
A tummy tuck addresses only the abdomen, while a lower body lift is more comprehensive. It includes a tummy tuck component but also lifts and tightens the thighs and buttocks in the same procedure. If your excess skin is limited to the abdomen, a tummy tuck alone may be enough; if it extends into the thighs and buttocks, a lower body lift is typically the better fit.
Cost varies significantly because a lower body lift is an extensive surgical procedure tailored to the patient’s needs. Lower body lift costs will vary depending on the complexity of the procedures and other factors. Our surgeons will give you a personalized price quote at your consultation.
Many patients use health care financing to make their procedures more affordable. Please see our Fees & Financing page to explore your options.
Plastic surgery is the perfect field for Dr. Hagopian, who has a knack for fixing things and helping people. The board-certified plastic surgeon is a former firefighter/paramedic, and he had a business building highly sought-after custom taillights in medical school. He met his wife, Nurse Hagopian, at Emory University, and they bonded over many shared interests, including a commitment to exceptional patient care.
Meet Dr. Thomas Hagopian
Georgia native Dr. Courtney Cripps has returned home to bring her expertise in facial, breast, body, and reconstructive plastic surgery to Hagopian Plastic Surgery. With advanced training at NYU Langone Health and a personalized approach to patient care, she is dedicated to helping every patient achieve natural-looking results that reflect their goals and lifestyle.
Meet Dr. Courtney CrippsOur surgeons perform lower body lift surgery under general anesthesia. During the abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) portion, Dr. Hagopian removes excess skin, repairs separated abdominal muscles when needed, and incorporates mons suspension to lift and support the pubic area. He also creates a natural-looking belly button using an almond-shaped, recessed construction that helps achieve a more anatomically realistic appearance.
During the thigh lift portion, excess skin is removed to improve the contour of the upper legs. The buttock lift addresses loose, sagging skin around the buttocks and lower back, lifting and repositioning the remaining tissue to create a smoother, firmer contour. Together, these procedures improve the shape and proportions of the lower body. In most cases, our surgeons also use liposuction to further refine the results.
You can return to desk work about 2 to 3 weeks after a lower body lift, but you will need about 4 to 6 weeks of recovery to resume exercise gradually. Dr. Hagopian and Dr. Cripps use progressive tension sutures, so you won’t need post-surgical drains, and they employ several ERAS (enhanced recovery after surgery) protocols to ensure a safe, smooth, and comfortable recovery.
Swelling may take weeks to months to resolve. However, you can encourage healing and recovery by wearing your compression garments continuously and receiving weekly lymphatic drainage massages.
Our surgeons take care to place your body lift incisions along natural creases or in areas easily hidden under clothing. While scarring is an inevitable part of any skin removal surgery, our practice offers scar therapies such as steroid injections, microneedling, and Silagen® silicone gel strips to minimize it. Many patients find that lower body lift scars after a year fade significantly.
Yes. Dr. Hagopian incorporates mons suspension into the abdominoplasty component of a lower body lift to support the pubic area and help prevent postoperative descent. This technique helps create a smoother transition between the lower abdomen and mons pubis. Patients with significant excess skin or fat in this area may benefit from additional contouring, depending on their anatomy and goals.
Yes. A lower body lift combines procedures to remove excess skin and improve the contours of the abdomen, thighs, and buttocks. Depending on your needs, Dr. Hagopian may also incorporate liposuction to address stubborn fat deposits. Additional body contouring procedures may be performed during the same surgery or staged separately based on your anatomy, health, and surgical goals.
Possibly. Although a circumferential lower body lift can address multiple areas during a single operation, Dr. Hagopian typically stages more extensive lower body contouring plans over 2 procedures. Staging allows him to tailor the surgical approach to the areas being treated and the extent of correction needed. He will explain whether a single procedure or staged approach is appropriate during your consultation.
Most patients can return to desk work approximately 2 to 3 weeks after a lower body lift. Exercise is typically resumed gradually after 4 to 6 weeks, depending on healing and the extent of surgery. Swelling may take several weeks to months to resolve. Wearing compression garments and following your surgeon’s postoperative instructions can help support recovery.
At Hagopian Plastic Surgery, you won’t need drains after a lower body lift. Instead, our surgeons use progressive tension sutures, which eliminate the need for drains altogether. This results in a more comfortable, manageable recovery for most patients.
Most patients find it comfortable to sleep in a slightly reclined or elevated position during the initial weeks of recovery, often with pillows supporting the back and knees to reduce tension on the incision areas. Sleeping flat on your stomach is generally not recommended until you’ve healed further. Our surgeons provide specific positioning guidance based on the extent of your procedure.
Body lift results are typically long-lasting, especially if you maintain a stable weight and healthy lifestyle habits. That said, natural aging and future weight fluctuations may affect your results over time.
The cost of a lower body lift depends on the extent of surgery, the combination of procedures performed, and the complexity of your individual treatment plan. Because lower body lifts are customized to each patient’s anatomy and goals, pricing is determined during your consultation. Hagopian Plastic Surgery offers financing options to help make treatment more manageable.
Recognized as an Atlanta Magazine Top Doc in 2024, 2025, and 2026 and a Castle Connolly Top Doctor in 2025 and 2026, Dr. Thomas Hagopian brings extensive body contouring expertise to patients seeking lower body lift surgery. To learn more about your options, please call (404) 885-8542 or request a consultation online. We look forward to helping you celebrate your new shape.
Reviewed for clinical accuracy by a Hagopian Plastic Surgery Medical Editor on October 18th, 2026.
