Liposuction Surgery

What is FAT? History of this Treatment What is Tumescent Liposuction? Surgery Planning The Procedure Different Techniques

Post-Op After Surgery Health Issues

If you’ve tried everything to lose weight, but the shape you have is still not what you want, read this.

While exercise and dieting may be useful for ridding oneself of unwanted weight and fat, some fat deposits may not respond to an individual’s efforts at weight loss. Applying liposuction techniques may be an option in these situations.

Plastic surgery procedure commonly referred to as liposuction, also known as Lipoplasty. Many surgeons are specialized in operating for stubborn fat deposits that are apparently immune to the whole workout of dieting and exercise. Most people know that liposuction involves removing fat from certain parts of the body to create a more streamlined shape. But how exactly does it work?

Liposuction Prices

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What Is Fat?

First, what is fat? Fat is tissue (otherwise known as adipose tissue) made up of cells that store energy and insulate the body.

Fat is generally subcutaneous, meaning that it is located underneath the skin. Where fat is deposited around the body depends on a person’s gender. In men, fat tends to congregate in the chest, abdomen and buttocks. In women, it generally gathers in the breasts, hips, waist and buttocks.

There are two layers of subcutaneous fat: deep and superficial. During a liposuction procedure (also known as lipoplasty or suction lipectomy), the doctor makes a tiny incision and inserts a hollow, stainless steel tube (called a cannula) into the deep fat layer. You must know that working on this layer is safer than working on the superficial layer, because there is less risk of injuring the skin. In a typical procedure, the doctor pushes and pulls the tube through the fat layer. As the cannula moves, it breaks up the localized fat cells, and a vacuum pump or syringe removes the fat with suction.

Liposuction is not a low-effort alternative to exercise and diet. It is a form of body contouring and not a weight loss method. The amount of fat removed varies by doctor, method, and patient, but the average amount is typically less than 10 pounds (5 kg).

There are several factors that limit the amount of fat that can be safely removed in one session. Ultimately, the operating physician and the patient make the decision. There are negative aspects to removing too much fat. Unusual “lumpiness” in the skin may be present in those patients that are over suctioned.

The contouring that is possible through liposuction may cause the appearance of weight loss to be greater than the actual amount of fat removed. The procedure may be performed under general or local (“tumescent”) anesthesia. The safety of the technique relates to the amount of tissue removed, the choice of anesthetic, and you as the patient’s health in general.

History Of This Treatment

The History of Liposuction; was first developed in the late 1970s to remove undesired fat from nearly all body areas, including the face, neck, chin, breast, abdomen, hips, love handles, inner and outer thighs, arms, buttocks, knees and ankles. In short, plastic surgeons typically perform liposuction wherever there is excess body fat that does not respond well to diet or exercise.

In 1975, Italian researchers Georgio and Arpad Fischer first came up with the idea of removing fat through hollow tubes attached to a suction device. But their “dry” liposuction technique had many risks, most notably severe blood loss and postoperative complications such as skin dents.

A French surgeon, Yves-Gerard Illouz, later devised the safer “wet” technique, in which he injected a salt solution into the surgical area to reduce blood loss and ease removal of fat tissue. In 1987, a California dermatologist, Jeffrey Klein, came up with the tumescent technique, adding the anesthetic lidocaine into the injected solution. This remains the most popular liposuction technique used today.

What Is Tumescent Liposuction?

HCR is getting a lot of request of what the differences are with Tumescent versus Liposuction. So here we explain a little bit about the history and what tumescent liposuction is.

Developed by dermatological surgeons in the 1980s, a major advancement called tumescent liposuction completely revolutionized the procedure. This breakthrough approach refers to swelling the skin with local anesthetic. The use of tumescent liposuction allows doctors to safely and effectively remove deep and superficial layers of fat under local anesthesia with relatively very little discomfort, rare complications and very improved cosmetic results.

Tumescent liposuction can be performed in the surgeon’s office facility, in an outpatient surgical suite or in a hospital. This method enables the surgeon to remove fat more uniformly with fewer skin irregularities and less bleeding and bruising.

Adequate Candidates

Men and women of virtually any age have enjoyed cosmetic improvement from liposuction. Ideal candidates are people in their normal weight range with one or several areas to reduce and shape. An individual who is overweight but stable in his or her weight pattern with one or two areas to improve can also benefit from the procedure. However, it is especially important for this patient to have realistic expectations and look forward to contouring enhancement rather than weight reduction. Cost of this procedure also plays a great factor, in choosing and benefiting having it one in Costa Rica, being very cheap compared to the United State, this surgery may cost from $1500-$3000 depending on the site that you need treated.

Surgery Planning

Before the liposuction surgery, a complete medical history is taken and a careful examination is conducted in order to evaluate your condition. During the consultation, your surgeon describes the procedure and what results might realistically be expected. Your doctor also will review alternative treatment options and explain the possible risks and complications that may occur. Photographs are frequently taken before and after surgery to help evaluate the amount of improvement.

Immediately before surgery the plastic surgeon marks the skin to indicate from which area(s) the fat will be removed.

The Procedure

As with most types of surgery, liposuction requires anesthesia. But the type of anesthesia depends upon how much of the body is being worked on. For small areas, doctors can use local anesthesia (which numbs only the area involved). Usually, the doctor administers a sedative (either orally or via injection) along with the local anesthesia to relax the patient. Alternately, the doctor may give the patient an epidural, which is given intravenously and blocks sensation to an entire part of the body (for example, from the waist down). General anesthesia may also be used in a hospital setting when a large amount of fat is to be removed. With most liposuction procedures performed today, the doctor injects a local anesthesia as part of a fluid mixture.

During tumescent liposuction, large volumes of a solution containing dilute lidocaine (a local anesthetic) and dilute epinephrine (a drug to shrink capillaries and prevent blood loss) are injected with minimal discomfort directly into areas of excessive fatty deposits. A small incision is then made in the skin, and a small, straw-like cannula connected to a suction machine is inserted into the fatty layers.

Using to and fro movements, the unwanted fatty deposits are evenly and thoroughly drawn through the cannula into a collection system. An elastic garment is then worn for compression and healing.

Different Techniques

Super-wet
This technique is similar to the tumescent technique, with the exception that it uses less fluid (about the same amount as the amount of fluid and fat tissue removed). Although a small amount of lidocaine is sometimes added to the fluid, this technique often requires general or IV-epidural anesthesia. The procedure takes between one to two hours to perform.

Ultrasound-assisted
This relatively new technique uses a special cannula that vibrates very rapidly and gives off ultrasound energy. As the cannula passes through the fat cells, that energy liquefies the fat cells, which are then suctioned out. The ultrasound can be administered either above the skin (with a special emitter) or below the surface of the skin (with an ultrasound cannula).

There are two types of ultrasound cannulas:
Solid probe Hollow core probe Ultrasound assisted liposuction takes longer to perform than other types of liposuction, but it is more precise and tends to be more effective.

Doctors now have at their disposal a motorized cannula, which moves back and forth at very rapid speeds over a distance of 3 to 5 millimeters. It can remove about 40 percent more fat per minute than manual liposuction.

Post-Op – After Surgery

What Happens After Surgery? The local anesthesia injected into the tissue remains for 18 to 24 hours following surgery, greatly minimizing postoperative pain. After tumescent liposuction, patients are usually alert and able to function without nausea or grogginess associated with general anesthesia. With the tumescent technique, there is minimal bruising, and many patients do not require postoperative medication for pain. You can usually return to a desk-type job within 48 hours; physical exercise generally can be resumed three to seven days after liposuction.

After the procedure, many patients have fluid drainage from the liposuction site. Sometimes, doctors need to insert tubes to facilitate that drainage. Often, patients wear a tight-fitting elastic garment over the surgical area treated to compress the affected area, reduce swelling and promote healing. Patients may also take antibiotics to prevent infection. The stitches in the incision are removed or may dissolve after about 10 days. Many patients experience pain, soreness or burning during the healing process, but these symptoms usually go away within three weeks.

Health Issues

Possible Complications can occur for anyone who has diabetes mellitus, a heart condition, poor circulation, an infection, past history of bleeding or a coagulation disorder should check with their primary care physician before undergoing liposuction. Liposuction is also not recommended for people who are on medication that interferes with blood clotting (blood thinners such as aspirin, warfarin and heparin

Because not everyone benefits from the same type of surgery, and some people aren’t good candidates at all, every liposuction procedure starts off with an extensive consultation. The doctor will evaluate your health (both physical and psychological) and determine whether your skin elasticity and fat placement makes you a good candidate. Then he or she will help you decide which liposuction procedure is most appropriate for you. While no procedures are risk free, tumescent liposuction is extremely low risk when it is performed using local anesthesia in an outpatient setting. Risks are often increased when general anesthesia is used.

Your New Look

Liposuction is permanent, but it cannot erase obesity. If a person undergoes liposuction and then eats too much and doesn’t exercise, he or she will notice a rippling in the treated areas, and the fat will pop up in other parts of the body. The problem is especially pronounced in people who were overweight prior to the procedure. To compensate for the lost fat cells, their bodies produce more fat cells in other areas, and fat begins to congregate there.

So there are precautions to take , but if you are seriously looking for a drastic change in your body, know that liposuction is one of the most effective ways to achieve this, and start on your way to living life how you’ve always desired.