With all the improvements in liposuction technology and techniques that have evolved in the past thirty years or so, you can have liposuction done on pretty much any body area.

Originally, in the early 1980s, liposuction was done on the abdomen. To reduce bleeding and remove larger amounts of fat with less discomfort, tumescent liposuction was developed, where large volumes of fluid are first injected. The fluid is a saline solution (salty to match the body’s saltiness) with ingredients to shrink blood vessels and anesthetize the area. Then high-powered suction removed fluid and fat together.

That enabled people to have fatty tissue removed from much of the lower body:

· Abdomen

· Thighs

· Buttocks

· Flanks

A remaining problem was that some body areas have more fibrous fatty tissue which is harder to suction out. Examples are the back, chest and hips. In efforts to solve this problem, ultrasonic liposuction was developed in the early 1990s.

Ultrasound (vibration with sound beyond our hearing range) is used to break the fibrous cell membranes, emulsifying the fat before it is removed by suction. This approach has the added benefits of reduced bleeding and bruising, and smaller incisions because the cannulas used to remove fat are narrower. Ultrasound also helps the skin shrink over the reduced body area.

Ultrasonic liposuction is effectively used for both males and females in:

· Breast reduction

· Love handles

· Fat removal from the upper back

SmartLipo™

SmartLipo, also called laser liposuction, uses a laser to dissolve fat instead of suctioning it out of the body. This is a very different procedure from tumescent or ultrasonic liposuction, although the goal is the same. The targeted area is given local anesthetic and a very small incision is made. The laser is a hand-held device like a pen, inserted beneath the skin and moved so as to target the designated treatment areas. When the laser light is directed to fat cells, they break up instantly. The fatty fluid thus released is naturally excreted by the body’s lymphatic system.

As with all procedures using medical lasers, there is the added benefit that the laser seals the blood vessels, reducing bruising, and reducing bleeding to virtually none. It also tightens the skin’s collagen, causing the skin to shrink more tightly over the reduced body area. This is especially helpful on facial areas.

Because of the greater precision and subtlety of laser liposuction, smaller body areas can be treated, such as:

· Below the chin

· Face

· Knees

· Waist

· Neck

· Arms

All liposuction procedures are customized. If you are wondering about your own particular areas of excess fat and whether they can be treated with some form of liposuction, the first step would be to schedule a consultation with an experienced cosmetic surgeon.

If you are in the Indianapolis, Indiana area, you could not do better than to see Dr. Richard Linderman. He has been in the vanguard of liposuction improvements since 1982 and was the first cosmetic surgeon to offer liposuction in Indianapolis.

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Liposuction is a cosmetic surgery employed to remove excess fat from body parts. It is also called lipoplasty, suction lipectomy, liposculpture or fat suction.

Generally the fat is removed from thighs, chin, buttocks, lovehandles (abdomen), breasts and stomach for women and chin, waist, breasts and buttocks for men.

This surgical procedure is not an alternative to exercise and dieting and should be used only to remove the stubborn fat that does not respond to exercises and diet.

Liposuction is not a weight loss method but a method to remove excess fat. 10-15 pounds of fat is removed generally. However, taking out of large amounts of fat can be dangerous at times.

There are many types of liposuction performed today like traditional liposuction, tumescent liposuction, ultrasound liposuction, superwet liposuction. All these methods employ a cannula (a blunt straw like tube) for suction of fat.

Saline water is injected into the space between muscle and fat to separate them. If the amount of saline water is less than the amount of fat to be removed it is called traditional liposuction.

If the saline water is 3 to 4 times the volume of fat to be removed it is called tumescent liposuction. Adding extra water assists the surgeon in moving the cannula back and forth to break up the fat cells. However excess water may affect the homeostasis of the body. In super wet liposuction the amount of saline water is the same as the amount of fat to be removed. This is the most popular surgical method used by surgeons.

In ultrasonic liposuction the fat is initially liquefied by ultrasound before being suctioned out. However, ultrasound methods are not popular as they sometime lead to necrosis (death of skin) and seromas (collection of yellow fluid in pockets).

In all types of liposuction either local anesthesia or general anesthesia is used. The usual anesthetic used is lidocaine. Epinephrine is also used in liposuction to reduce blood loss.

To perform liposuction the patient must be over 18 and in good health with elastic skin. If the skin is not sufficiently elastic the excess skin may have to be removed after liposuction. Generally the excess skin is removed from abdomen called abdominoplasty or tummy tuck. This leaves scar marks on the skin.

Diabetics and patients on antibiotics are advised not to undergo liposuction. Before operation the patient should not have taken any anticoagulants like warfarin, phenindione etc.

If general anesthesia is given the patient has to fast on the night before the operation. If local anesthesia is given there is no requirement of fasting. Smoking and drinking etc should be avoided.

The incisions are usually less than an inch. After operation the excess fluid takes days to weeks to drain out. During that time antibiotics and/or pain killers are prescribed.

Patient recovery varies from days to 2 months. As with all surgeries there are surgical risks in liposuction too. There are minor risk, up to 0.7%, of side effects like internal organs being scraped, seromas, necrosis, excessive bleeding etc.

Liposuction is not a weight loss method and the patient should expect realistic and not dramatic changes in appearance.

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Another very popular cosmetic treatment to remove excess fat is liposuction; the use of this treatment is not designed to curb excess weight. Whilst at first this seems like an ideal fat removal method, the downside is that it often returns; unfortunately this usually occurs in a different area – one that was possibly fat free before!

Tumescent and Ultrasonic are the two most commonly used methods although there are other lesser known techniques. The latest of these methods; Tumescent, has in a short space of time become one of the most popular forms of cosmetic enhancement in the USA today.

The tube used is much smaller and this also helps lessen the bruising which normally means a longer recovery period. The Tumescent liposuction technique is so effective at minimizing blood loss that the majority of patients lose less blood during the surgery than they do at their routine pre-operative laboratory tests.

Some of the most awkward areas to remove fat from are the thighs, hips, back and upper stomach region but Ultrasonic liposuction makes this possible.

The conventional method is often more difficult to perform over other cosmetic treatments because the surgeon cannot see where the probe is, and as a consequence internal injury can be the result. As always the best course of action for a prospective patient is to speak to the surgeon who is going the carry out the procedure and learn what method is best suited for them.

Although liposuction is relatively safe if carried out by a professional cosmetic surgeon, there can be risks and very, very rarely death about 2 in 10,000. To help reduce this risk, physical examinations are necessary for all subjects to make sure that every individual is healthy enough for the procedure to go ahead. Keeping the wounds clean and free from infection after the procedure is imperative so plastic surgeons prescribe antibiotics to all patients during the healing process. Fortunately though, in the past few years much progress has been made in the field of cosmetic surgery in respect to this procedure.

A new procedure akin to liposuction is Lipo dissolve, which eliminates unwanted fat with a series of micro-injections into problem areas such as the neck, stomach and thighs. Of course the greatest benefit to patients undergoing this process is the fact that no form of anesthetic is required and it does not interfere with other cosmetic skin treatments where surgery is not required.

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Another very popular cosmetic treatment to remove excess fat is liposuction; usually in the thighs, buttocks and abdominal areas, although it is not a weight loss treatment. An unwanted and peculiar side-effect is the fat that’s removed can sometimes reoccur; but not necessarily in the region it was originally taken from.

The two most common methods to get rid of it are the tumescent technique and Ultrasonic. The latest of these methods; Tumescent, has in a short space of time become one of the most popular forms of cosmetic enhancement in the USA today.

There is less bruising with this method which is an additional benefit from the use of a smaller tube. Tumescent liposuction is now the procedure of choice with cosmetic surgeons because the adrenaline added to the solution used, cuts down the bleeding that normally happens.

The Ultrasonic liposuction method is an addition to the traditional treatment but it allows surgeons to remove more fat, especially from areas in the body that were difficult to treat previously.

Every medical procedure has some element of risk and this is no different because when using the traditional treatment process the plastic surgeon is unable to see exactly where the probe is inside the body. The best advice when considering this course of treatment is to consult with the surgeon about the best and safest technique.

While the liposuction procedure is relatively safe when performed by a cosmetic surgeon, it is not without its risks and side effects, and including, death in very rare instances; approximately 20 out of 100,000. In preparing for the procedure, individuals are required to undergo a series of physical examinations to determine whether or not their health is good enough to have it performed. With any medical procedure there is the risk of infection so surgeons have to ensure all wounds are kept clean and prescribe a course of antibiotics to patients having this cosmetic treatment. Fortunately, fat removal techniques have improved a great deal in recent years.

Lipo Dissolve is a series of micro-injections developed to dissolve fat deposits of the face and body providing an effect similar to regular liposuction. One other benefit of Lipo Dissolve is that it does not require any form of anesthesia and patients feel almost no pain whatsoever.

When trying to lose fat, liposuction should be the last alternative. With every surgery there will always be some minimal risk.

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There are three major techniques of liposuction, involving different kinds of suction equipment.

Tumescent Liposuction

Developed about 15 years ago, this is the most common, and safest, method of liposuction. The term “tumescence” refers to the swelling and firming of fatty tissues by the means of infusing fluid into the tissue. After tiny incisions are made where the patient’s skin covers fatty tissue, the area is soaked with a saline solution that contains an anesthetic (Lidocaine) and adrenaline to reduce blood loss and bruising. This reduction of blood loss through the shrinking of capillaries has been a great advance, enabling plastic surgeons to remove much fat with little blood loss.

Tumescent liposuction involves swelling the areas to be suctioned with a solution that equals two to three times the amount of the fat and fluid that will be suctioned out. In the Super-Wet technique of liposuction, however, the tissues are infused with an amount of fluid that equals the fat and fluids that will be suctioned. Super-wet involves the use smaller amounts of, or no, Lidocaine, thereby reducing the risk of Lidocaine toxicity.

Power Assisted Liposuction

In essence, this is liposuction hastened by a vibrating suction cannula. Developed by a German surgeon, this technique employs an electric-powered cannula, which like a jackhammer sucks out the fat faster. In my opinion, while it might help the surgeon to do his or her job faster, it takes away from the surgeon’s ability to feel the contour and the topography of tissue as this machine vibrates. Also, this machine might not be safe to be used in delicate or potentially dangerous areas such as the neck and face.

Ultrasonic Assisted Liposuction (UAL)

This method was first used in the 1990′s, and was considered an advance in treating especially fibrous areas, such as the male chests, back, and flanks. It uses cannulas that bombard subcutaneous fatty tissues with waves of ultrasound, thereby liquefying them through ultrasound energy and heat. An external method also delivers this energy by applying a paddle-shaped instrument to the skin. The higher general complication rate of this technique as compared to other conventional techniques has recently drawn surgeons away from this fad.

Specifically, ultrasonic assisted lipoplasty (UAL) carries an increased risk of skin and tissue burns, permanent tissue damage and scarring, nerve damage causing lasting skin irritation or pain, and fluid buildup or formation of seroma cavities of fluid beneath the skin. Because there is insufficient proof of the safety of UAL devices, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has never approved the marketing and advertising of UAL devices to be specifically used for liposuction.

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