Esthetic and functional surgery of the umbilicus: a transumbilicous plication technique

Dear Editor,

In the last edition, Pedroso et al.¹ published a retrospective study titled “Vertical incision umbilicoplasty: description of the technique and evaluation of the degree of satisfaction” (volume 32, number 4, pages 534-540). I would like to congratulate the authors for the results and the technical and scientific quality of the study in assessing the degree of satisfaction. In the description of the surgical technique, the authors report that “... the lateral fixation of the umbilicus was made using a U-shaped transumbilical suture similar to the technique described by Chia et al.² ” The authors refer to one of my articles published in this same journal in 2011, the figures of which are also illustrated in the cover of that issue.

I would like to know what the difference is between the technique I described in my article and vertical incision umbilicoplasty because the concepts described by the authors, including the esthetics of the vertical deep umbilicus with preservation of the adipose periumbilical cushion, have been published in my article in 2011 and the technique described as being “. similar to the technique of Chi et al.²” is identical to the technique I described and was performed to “. create a depth in the umbilical scar and thus establish its concavity ”

The only difference is the vertical incision in the abdominal flap, without the removal of a spindle. This procedure is used by many surgeons, including myself, but I have discontinued its use because, in my experience, removal of a 2 to 3-mm-wide and approximately 2-cm-long rectangular segment (depending on the original size of the umbilicus and the proportion with the abdomen) better accommodates the umbilicus, without a significant difference in the umbilical width in the final result.

Once again, I congratulate the authors for the technical rigor of the study and would like to raise this scientific discussion.

REFERÊNCIAS

• ¹
  Pedroso DB, Soares DAS, Cammarota MC, Daher CMC, Galdino MCA, Santos GC, et al. Umbilicoplastia por incisão vertical: descrição da técnica e avaliação da satisfação. Rev Bras Cir Plast. 2017;32(4):534-40.
• ²
  Chang YC, Roxo ACW, Labanca L, Ritter PD. Cirurgia estética e funcional do umbigo: técnica de plicatura transumbilical. Rev Bras Cir Plast. 2011;26(2):293-7.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  12 May 2023
• Date of issue
  2018

History

• Received
  09 Feb 2018
• Accepted
  19 Feb 2018