A surgical operation called liposuction employs a suction technique to remove fat from particular body parts, such as the belly, hips, thighs, buttocks, arms, or neck. Additionally, liposuction contours (shapes) these areas. Liposuction is also known as lipoplasty and body sculpting.
Liposuction isn’t often seen as an all-encompassing weight-loss technique or a weight-loss substitute. If you are overweight, bariatric procedures like gastric bypass surgery or diet and exercise will certainly help you lose more weight than liposuction will.
If you have a steady body weight overall but have excess body fat in some areas, you might be a candidate for liposuction.
Using liposuction, fat can be removed from body parts that haven’t responded to diet and exercise, such the:
Abdomen
higher arms
Buttocks
ankles and calves
back and chest
thighs and hips
Neck and chin
In addition, liposuction can occasionally be performed to treat gynecomastia or reduce the size of the breasts.
The volume and size of fat cells expand when you put on weight. Liposuction thus lowers the quantity of fat cells in a certain region. The volume of fat and the area’s appearance both influence how much fat is eliminated. As long as your weight doesn’t fluctuate, the subsequent shape modifications are typically irreversible.
The skin adapts to the changing shapes of the treated areas after liposuction. The skin will probably appear smooth if your skin is elastic and has good tone. However, the skin in the treated regions may appear loose if you have thin, poorly elastic skin.
Cellulite dimpling or other abnormalities of the skin’s surface are not improved by liposuction. Similar to liposuction, stretch marks cannot be eliminated.
You must be in good health and free from any problems that could make surgery more difficult, such as impaired blood flow, coronary artery disease, diabetes, or a weakened immune system, to be a candidate for liposuction.
How you prepare
Medicines and Food
Talk with your surgeon in advance of the procedure about what to anticipate from the surgery. In addition to reviewing your medical history, your surgeon will inquire about any existing diseases, drugs, dietary supplements, and herbal supplements you might be using.
Prior to surgery, your surgeon may advise you to cease taking specific medications, such as NSAIDs or blood thinners. Before your procedure, you might also need to obtain a few lab tests.
Other safety measures
Surgery can be performed in an office setting if only a modest quantity of fat needs to be removed for your operation. The surgery may be performed in a hospital, followed by an overnight stay, if a significant amount of fat is to be removed or if you intend to have other procedures done concurrently. In either instance, make plans for someone to pick you up from the procedure, drive you home, and stay with you for at least the first night.
What you can expect
The parts of your body that will undergo liposuction may have circles and lines drawn by the surgeon prior to the surgery. In order to compare before-and-after pictures, photos may also be taken.
The method used for your liposuction surgery will determine how it is carried out. Based on your treatment objectives, the area of your body that has to be treated, and whether you’ve had other liposuction operations in the past, your surgeon will choose the best technique for you.
liposuction with tumescence. The most popular kind of liposuction is this one. A sterile solution containing a combination of salt water, which helps remove fat, lidocaine, an anesthetic to decrease discomfort, and epinephrine, which constricts blood vessels, is injected into the area being treated by the surgeon. The affected area stiffens and swells as a result of the fluid mixture.
The surgeon will then make a few tiny incisions in your skin and place a cannula—a thin tube—under your skin. A vacuum is attached to the cannula, sucking fluids and fat out of your body. An intravenous (IV) line may be used to replace your body’s fluid levels.
helped by ultrasound liposuction (UAL). Combining standard liposuction with this kind of liposuction is occasionally done. A metal rod that generates ultrasonic radiation is inserted beneath your skin by the surgeon during UAL. This causes the fat cells to burst and causes the fat to break down for simpler disposal. With VASER-assisted liposuction, a new generation of UAL, a device that may enhance skin contouring and lessen the likelihood of skin damage is used.
Liposuction with laser assistance (LAL). High-intensity laser light is used in this method to breakdown fat for removal. During LAL, the surgeon makes a tiny incision in the skin and inserts a laser fiber to emulsify fat deposits. A cannula is then used to extract the fat.
Liposuction with power assistance (PAL). A cannula used in this kind of liposuction moves quickly back and forth. The surgeon can remove challenging fat more quickly and simply thanks to this vibration. PAL may occasionally result in reduced discomfort and edema, allowing the surgeon to remove fat with greater accuracy. If significant amounts of fat need to be removed or if you’ve undergone liposuction in the past, your surgeon might use this approach.
Who is good candidate
The process of liposuction is extremely personalized. You should act in your own best interests, not those of others or in an effort to conform to some sort of idealized ideal.
Good candidates for a liposuction typically include:
– Adults with firm, supple skin and strong muscle tone who are within 30% of their optimum weight
-Individuals who are in good health and do not have any illnesses that could endanger their life or prevent them from mending
those who have a positive perspective and precise body-contouring objectives
-Liposuction may be the solution for you if you are concerned by extra fat deposits on any part of your body that don’t go away with diet or exercise.
Throughout the process
Only local or regional anaesthetic, which is anesthetic only applied to a specific area of your body, may be needed for some liposuction procedures. General anesthesia, which causes a transient state of unconsciousness, may be required for other treatments. To keep you calm and comfortable, you might receive a sedative, usually by an IV injection.
Throughout the surgery, the surgical team will keep an eye on your heart rate, blood pressure, and blood oxygen level. Inform your surgeon if you have pain while under local anaesthetic. The dosage or motions might need to be changed.
Depending on the amount of fat that needs to be removed, the treatment could take up to several hours.
If general anesthesia was used, you will awaken in a recovery area. Usually, you’ll stay in the hospital or clinic for at least a few hours so that the staff can keep an eye on your healing. In order to ensure that you are not dehydrated or in shock from fluid loss, you may choose to spend the night in the hospital.
After the procedure
After the treatment, you might anticipate some pain, swelling, and bruising. A combination of painkillers and antibiotics may be recommended by your surgeon to lessen the chance of infection.
The surgeon might keep your incisions open after the treatment and insert temporary drains to encourage fluid drainage. Typically, you must put on restrictive compression clothing for a few weeks in order to reduce swelling.
You might have to wait a few days to go back to work and a few weeks to carry on with your regular activities, including exercising.
As the residual fat settles into place at this time, anticipate minor inconsistencies in the shape.
Healing Process
– On the same day that your VASER liposuction procedure, you should be able to return home. Since the process is not too intrusive, it can only take a few days for you to feel like yourself again. Depending on the locations treated and the volume of fat eliminated, recovery times will change. You’ll get a better understanding of what to anticipate from your surgeon.
– Pink-orange fluid may flow from the wound sites for the first several days, but this is completely normal and should go away on its own. Following VASER liposuction, discomfort is typically mild, so you probably won’t need to take any harsh medicines. Typically, there will be some swelling and some bruising or numbness in the area for close to 4 weeks. To give your body the best chance of properly recovering from the treatment, avoid heavy lifting for two weeks after the procedure.
– After your VASER liposuction, you will need to wear a special compression garment to help shape your body for close to 4 weeks. Your surgeon may give you additional details on this.
