11/12/2025
The Key to Better, Less Visible Scars
I thought I’d mix it up a little. Instead of posting the usual nose or face result, I wanted to show another procedure that’s often requested among my facial rejuvenation patients — brachioplasty, or removal of excess upper arm skin — and highlight an important concept in plastic surgery.
When there’s excess skin, there’s really no way to remove it without cutting it out. And when skin is cut out, it requires an incision, which means a scar. The goal isn’t to avoid a scar altogether — it’s to make it as fine, flat, and inconspicuous as possible.
The key to achieving that is minimizing tension and thoughtful scar placement.
1️⃣ Ideal scar placement — positioning the incision where it’s least visible in natural arm positions.
2️⃣ Tension-free closure — avoiding over-aggressive skin removal.
Tension is the enemy of good scars. It causes widening and migration — the same issues once seen in older facelift techniques that prioritized tightness over natural contour.
The arm, in particular, is an area of not only constant but extremes of motion compared to the face or neck. Different arm positions place varying tension on the incision, so leaving enough skin to accommodate those movements is essential. Over-tightening not only worsens scarring but can also limit comfort and motion.
The same principle applies across plastic surgery: the best and most natural results come from precision, balance, and restraint — not overcorrection.
