Dr Bernard Beldholm
Specialist Surgeon FRACS, Newcastle NSW
More than 15 years of experience in Breast, Body & Face Surgery
Body contouring after weight loss and pregnancy, breast, face and neck, gynaecomastia, liposuction (suction assisted lipectomy) and fat grafting surgery, assessed, operated on and reviewed by the same surgeon.
- Every consultation and every operation is with Dr Beldholm. After surgery, you are seen by him and by his surgical nurse, who reports directly to him, and he manages any issue personally.
- Surgery at Maitland Private Hospital, with 24-hour medical cover and an on-site intensive care unit.
- Risks, recovery and costs are published on this site for every procedure, so you can read before you contact us.
First consultation about one hour, in person in Lorn or by video.
Start with your situation
Each area has its own page: what Dr Beldholm assesses, which operations fit which pattern, the risks, the recovery and the costs.
After significant weight loss
Loose skin on the abdomen, flanks and back, arms, thighs, chest or breasts after bariatric surgery, weight-loss medication, or diet and exercise. Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck), fleur-de-lis and dual-vector abdominoplasty, belt lipectomy (body lift), brachioplasty (arm lift), thighplasty (thigh lift), upper body lift (torsoplasty).
After pregnancy
Loose lower abdominal skin and separated abdominal muscles (diastasis recti) that haven’t recovered with time and exercise. Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) with or without ultrasound-assisted liposuction, limited abdominoplasty, and breast surgery after breastfeeding.
Breast surgery
Breast reduction (reduction mammoplasty), breast lift (mastopexy), breast implants (augmentation mammoplasty), removal or replacement of implants, and fat grafting to the breast.
Face and neck
Facelift (rhytidectomy), neck lift (platysmaplasty), upper eyelid surgery (upper blepharoplasty), brow lift, and liposuction of the neck.
Men: chest and torso
Gynaecomastia (enlarged male breast tissue), and chest and torso surgery after significant weight loss (upper body lift, torsoplasty).
Liposuction (suction assisted lipectomy) & lipoedema
VASER Liposuction (Ultrasound-assisted lipectomy) of the abdomen, flanks, arms, back, thighs and neck, and surgery for lipoedema.
Fat grafting
Fat taken by liposuction from one area and transferred to another (autologous fat transfer): to the breast on its own or combined with implants, at implant removal or exchange, and during abdominoplasty.
How I decide whether to operate
Every consultation starts with the same question, whatever the area:
Is surgery the right answer for this problem, for this person, now?
These are the things I weigh before I recommend any operation.
A stable starting point
Your weight has been steady for at least six months, because that is when skin retraction has largely settled. For abdominal and breast surgery, your family is complete and breastfeeding finished at least 12 months ago.
Fitness for surgery
Conditions such as diabetes, sleep apnoea and anaemia are under control. Where nutrition may be a factor, I arrange a pre-operative blood panel and correct any deficiencies first. No nicotine in any form:
- Cigarettes
- Vaping
- Patches or gum
Stop for 6 weeks before and after surgery.
A problem an operation can actually treat
Loose skin, separated abdominal muscles, glandular breast tissue, descended facial tissue and loss of volume each respond to a different operation.
Realistic expectations
Surgery leaves scars, recovery takes weeks, and results vary from person to person.
Age
Cosmetic surgery is for adults (18+), with rare exceptions: most often gynaecomastia; occasionally, significant loose skin after major weight loss.
For anyone under 18 years old, the Medical Board requires more: I must be sure you can consent, your parents’ or guardian’s views are taken into account, a psychologist, psychiatrist or GP who is independent of me must assess you before any surgery, and there is a cooling-off period of at least three months between consent and surgery.
Each area’s page explains what I assess in more detail. If you would rather talk it through before booking, send a question and my team will call you back.
Learn more about Dr Beldholm
About Dr BeldholmDr Bernard Beldholm
(MED0001186274) is a registered medical practitioner and specialist surgeon (specialist registration in Surgery – general surgery).
He holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) and a Bachelor of Science (Medicine) from the University of New South Wales, and is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS), the body that trains and accredits surgeons in Australia and New Zealand.
Read more About Dr Beldholm- In practice as a specialist surgeon for more than 15 years. Body contouring after significant weight loss and pregnancy is a large part of his practice; breast surgery, face and neck surgery, gynaecomastia surgery, liposuction and fat grafting are other significant parts.
- More than 10,000 surgical procedures since his medical registration in 2000.
- Completed additional fellowship training in cosmetic surgery through the Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine (ACCSM), including a documented logbook of more than 500 cases during that training.
- Author of peer-reviewed research on abdominoplasty and liposuction techniques, and a presenter at surgical conferences.
- Developed two techniques for complex skin patterns after weight loss
- The dual-vector abdominoplasty
- The circumferential hybrid abdominoplasty
- Each with its own published recovery guide and complications guide.
- Publishes patient education continuously: a YouTube channel with more than 12,000 subscribers, the Body Contouring podcast, and written recovery and complications guides for the procedures he performs.
- Works with a patient coordinator, a surgical nurse, a reception team and specialist anaesthetists, and operates at Maitland Private Hospital.
Originally from Sweden, he has lived and worked in Australia since 1994 and is based in the Hunter.
How it works
1. GP referral
All cosmetic & reconstructive surgery requires a referral from a GP or other specialist who works independently of me and does not perform cosmetic procedures. A referral is also what makes the Medicare rebate on a specialist consultation available. If you don’t have one yet, ask your GP: the letter only needs to describe your concern and request an opinion.
2. First consultation
About one hour, with me. In person in Lorn, or by video if you are travelling. I take a full history, examine the area, and where relevant assess the pattern of skin laxity and other surgical factors. I tell you whether surgery is reasonable for you now and, if it is, which operation fits. No consent forms are signed at a first consultation.
3. Second consultation and written information
At least one consultation must be in person before you can consent. You receive written information covering what the operation involves, the type of anaesthesia, the range of possible outcomes, the risks and complications, recovery, and the total cost. We also discuss alternatives, including not having surgery.
4. Cooling-off period
After two consultations and signed consent, there is a cooling-off period of at least seven days before surgery is booked or a deposit is paid.
5. Surgery and recovery
Surgery is performed under general anaesthesia at Maitland Private Hospital. Your hospital stay depends on the operation and is set out on each procedure page. I review you intensively for the first two weeks, then at four weeks, three months, six months and twelve months; this follow-up is included in the surgical fee.
Book your appointment online now
Learn before you decide
Dr Beldholm publishes the questions patients ask in consultation and the answers he gives: what each operation involves, who it suits, what recovery is like, and what can go wrong. Read, watch or listen before you book.
Watch
YouTube: more than 12,000 subscribers. Videos on each operation, recovery week by week, and the questions patients ask most.
Listen
The Body Contouring podcast, by topic: abdominoplasty, breast surgery, belt lipectomy, brachioplasty, thighplasty, facelift and neck lift, liposuction, post-weight-loss surgery and general questions. Listen to the podcast →
Cost and Medicare
Dr Beldholm’s surgical fee for each operation is published on its cost page, together with what the anaesthetist, the hospital and compression garments typically add, so you can see the whole picture before you book a consultation. Follow-up appointments to twelve months are included in the surgical fee.
Some operations may attract a Medicare rebate and private health fund cover when the Medicare item-number criteria are met:
For example, abdominoplasty after significant weight loss (item 30177) and repair of abdominal muscle separation after pregnancy (item 30175).
Whether you qualify is assessed at consultation, and each cost page explains the criteria. Your total cost is confirmed in writing before the cooling-off period.
Cost pages
- Surgery after weight loss →
- Surgery after pregnancy →
- Breast surgery →
- Face and neck surgery →
- Gynaecomastia surgery →
- Liposuction and lipoedema surgery →
- Fat grafting →
- All cost pages →
Travelling from Sydney, the Central Coast or regional NSW
Many of Dr Beldholm’s patients travel to see him.
Lorn is about 30 minutes from Newcastle, about 45 minutes from the Central Coast and about an hour and a half from Sydney by road. The first consultation can be by video. You must be seen in person before you can consent to surgery, and that visit can be combined with the second consultation.
For the larger operations, patients stay in the Maitland area for about a week after surgery so that Dr Beldholm can review them personally in the first days of recovery. The practice can suggest accommodation nearby. When you go home, Dr Beldholm writes to your GP so that your care continues locally, and some of the later reviews can be done by video.
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