Liposuction

Liposuction, or suction lipectomy, is the surgical procedure by which we can reduce the number of fat cells in a particular area to improve or sculpt a person's shape. Our individual fat proportions are set at puberty and are genetically determined. If mom had big saddle bags, don't be surprised if you get them too. The good news is that if we remove some of these excess cells in the saddlebags, they are gone FOREVER! If you gain a few pounds you won't re-grow the saddlebags. Your new proportion will be maintained. The fat doesn't "go somewhere else" rather, you add weight according to your new proportion - which is different from the way you previously added weight.

Liposuction is really effective provided the patient has good skin tone. This will be evaluated at the time of your consultation. If the skin tone isn't adequate after liposuction, then you can get laxity of the skin and a less than desirable outcome. This is why it is extremely important to have a board-certified plastic surgeon do your procedure. There are an increasing number of non-plastic surgeons offering liposuction, and the outcomes can be absolutely disastrous. 

Liposuction is not a substitute for weight loss. It is ideally used for people who have disproportionate areas of fat that can be reduced to improve their shape. I use liposuction in almost every abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) I perform. It is an invaluable tool to improve contours during that procedure.

For the last several years, I have used ultrasound assisted liposuction (UAL) which utilizes a pretreatment of ultrasound to the areas to be suctioned. This serves to break up the fatty tissue, making it easier to remove with the liposuction cannula (tube inserted to remove the tissue). This method is less traumatic than conventional liposuction, allowing for less post-op pain and an easier recovery.

UAL is similar to Smart Lipo, which uses laser to similarly break up the fatty layer before suctioning. I don't use Lipodissolve - a procedure in which a concoction of different chemicals is injected to dissolve fat cells. The safety of this procedure has never been confirmed in peer-reviewed studies. Until it has been properly studied,  we won't offer this to our patients.

I look forward to meeting with you to see if you are a good candidate for liposuction.

Below is an example of of a liposuction procedure before and after photo. If you would like to see more before and after photos, click on "Photo Gallery" on the left.

Written by: Dr. Bruce W. Van Natta