Diastasis recti

In dia­sta­sis rec­ti, the two straight abdo­mi­nal mus­cles sepa­ra­te. The ten­di­nous band along the mid­li­ne, the linea alba, beco­mes stret­ched and slack. It is not a her­nia in the strict sense.

Cau­ses

Dia­sta­sis rec­ti most com­mon­ly deve­lo­ps during pregnan­cy, when the gro­wing abdo­men stret­ches the mid­li­ne con­sider­a­b­ly. Mul­ti­ple pregnan­ci­es, seve­ral births in quick suc­ces­si­on and weak con­nec­ti­ve tis­sue make it more likely. Signi­fi­cant excess weight or unsui­ta­ble trai­ning with high abdo­mi­nal pres­su­re can also contribute.

Sym­ptoms

A typi­cal sign is a bul­ge or groo­ve along the midd­le of the abdo­men that beco­mes visi­ble when the abdo­mi­nal mus­cles are ten­sed, for ins­tance when sit­ting up from lying down. The abdo­men may stay roun­ded despi­te a nor­mal weight. Some peo­p­le also report back pain or a fee­ling of insta­bi­li­ty in the core.

Tre­at­ment

Mild cases often impro­ve on their own after child­birth or with tar­ge­ted phy­sio­the­ra­py. If a signi­fi­cant gap remains, the mus­cles can be stit­ched back tog­e­ther sur­gi­cal­ly, often as part of an abdo­mi­no­plasty, which also allows excess skin to be remo­ved. A mini tum­my tuck is usual­ly not suf­fi­ci­ent for this.

Matching tre­at­ment at Swiss Der­ma Cli­nic: Tum­my Tuck (Abdo­mi­no­plasty)