Abdominal Compartment Syndrome Following Abdominoplasty: A Case Report and Review

Abdominoplasty is among the most commonly performed aesthetic procedures in plastic surgery. Despite high complication rate, abdominal contouring procedures are expected to rise in popularity with the advent of bariatric surgery. Patients with a history of gastric bypass surgery have an elevated incidence of small bowel obstruction from internal herniation, which is associated with non-specific upper abdominal pain, nausea, and a decrease in appetite. Internal hernias, when subjected to elevated intra-abdominal pressures, have a high-risk of developing ischemic bowel. We present a case report of patient with previous laparoscopic Roux-en-y gastric bypass who developed acute ischemic bowel leading to abdominal compartment syndrome following abdominoplasty. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case in the literature. We herein emphasise on the subtle symptoms and signs that warrant further investigations in prospective patients for an abdominal contouring procedure with a prior history of gastric bypass surgery.