Liposuction is a cosmetic surgical procedure in which excess fat is removed from the body by suction and it is performed to give better form to the body. This procedure is common among people who fail to lose unwanted fat from certain areas even after following an exercise regime and are struggling through heavy dieting. Fat cells are of mesenchymal origin like nerve and muscle cells and for people not morbidly obese these do not increase in number. Therefore once removed from an area the result is expected to last unless someone is irresponsible and puts on significant weight.

It is important to know and understand that liposuction is not a procedure to lose weight but rather a procedure to improve shape of the body or figure. That is why it is also known as body contouring., lipoplasty, liposculpture suction. It is more reasonably priced than most imagine. Also important is that the surgeon has a good experience to perform it successfully. Experienced surgeons would select the patients where the likelihood of satisfactory results outweigh the potential adverse effects.

ARE YOU THE BEST CANDIDATE FOR THE SURGERY?

To be the best candidate for this procedure you need to:

• Be relatively fit and healthy
• Be a non-smoker.
• Avoid being overweight or obese.
• Have a strong immune system.
• Should not have much cellulite or saggy skin, as liposuction alone does not correct these and additional procedures may be required.
• Be either free from any chronic disease like diabetes, etc, or should be under good medical control.
• Possess no adverse reactions to blood thinning medicine, as there is risk of bleeding.

Make sure to give your body enough time to heal and avoid doing any stressful activity in the recovery period. Surgeons also suggest abiding by a healthy diet plan to make the results of the procedure more effective and long-lasting.

HOW IS LIPOSUCTION DONE

Different surgeons have different preferences for anesthesia but it is ensured that patients stay comfortable and without pain during the surgery. Based on the particular case either local, regional or general anesthesia may be used. Almost any area of the body may be treated like abdomen, arms, thighs, butts, back and neck. But most experienced surgeons would limit the procedure to few areas per sitting to ensure safety.

Before the procedure markings are done on the target areas while the person is standing and points of entry are also planned. During the procedure a small hole is made through these and a specialized tube like instrument is introduced. The suction generated through the attached machine along with forward and backward movement removes the fat from the body.

TYPES OF LIPOSUCTION

This cosmetic procedure helps to get rid of excess body fat, enabling you to achieve better body shape and contour. Experts perform this procedure through different techniques:

TUMESCENT LIPOSUCTION (TL)

In this procedure, the surgeon uses a solution to loosen fat and decrease risks of bleeding etc. This sterile solution is a combination of anesthetic and blood vessel constriction medicine. Once injected, it causes the patient’s body to swell. Next, the surgeon proceeds to insert cannula, which is a thin tube under the skin to vacuum the fat out of the body.

SUCTION ASSISTED LIPOSUCTION (SAL)

This procedure uses a vacuum type device to remove the fat from the concerned body part. Only an experienced professional can use this device in the right manner.

POWER ASSISTED LIPOSUCTION (PAL)

Similar to SAL, this procedure uses a vacuum type device to remove fat with the difference that it uses a tool to facilitate the movement of cannula to perform surgery with more precision.

ULTRASOUND ASSISTED LIPOSUCTION (UAL)

This Liposuction method uses a metal rod that produces ultrasonic energy to emulsify fat. While it makes the surgery less stressful the increased risk of pain and burn means the need for a more experienced surgeon. Surgeons use this procedure in combination with tumescent liposuction for faster and improved surgery. The technique is especially useful for repeat procedures or where thick fibrous fat is expected.

LASER ASSISTED LIPOSUCTION (LAL)

As the name suggests, Laser assisted liposuction or Slimlipo or Smartlipo, uses laser energy to liquefy the fat that needs removal. This is also used to induce skin tightening, but one has to be careful not to cause burns. Again the need for good experience can’t be over emphasized .

POSSIBLE RISKS ATTACHED WITH LIPOSUCTION

The procedure is usually painless but the recovery period after the procedure might prove to be difficult for some. Surgeons always recommend consulting experts before moving further with your treatment. If done in the right candidates with reasonable expectations for the correct reason the results would be worth the effort. Length of the recovery period will depend on the area of surgery, patients body tissue reactions, amount of fat removed, etc.While change in shape and contour is visible immediately after procedure in some but due to swelling it takes about 4-6 weeks to see significant improvement after the procedure. It is important to follow the advice of your surgeon to avoid the adverse effects and achieve proper results. However, if you are a right candidate and have approached an experienced surgeon, then you are in safe hands. With dexterity in leveraging modern surgical tools and techniques, any such expert is more likely to appreciate your body shape and appearance can enhance appreciably.

DURING THE SURGERY

Anesthesia is much safer today and at good centres there are experienced experts with the best monitoring equipment to ensure this. Risk of damage to skin or deeper tissues from the equipment like burn is rare but possible.

AFTER THE SURGERY EARLY RECOVERY

The main risks involved after the surgery include pain, swelling and bruises but these are temporary and will improve over time. Possible infection in the operated area, blood clotting or seroma fluid collection under the skin may happen. This may require intervention sometimes but generally improves with medication alone. Risk to the internal organs is extremely rare. Tumescent technique has been much safer than others yet one has to be careful about thromboembolism.

DURING THE LATE RECOVERY

Most common reason for dissatisfaction after this procedure is when people expect weight loss which may not be much. So it is important to remember that this is a procedure for improvement of shape and form and have realistic expectations. In some cases one may encounter scars on the body, uneven skin colour, irregular contour, persistent soreness, etc. In the case of females, some temporary change in menstruation may be noticed.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM SURGERY FOR THE BODY

Liposuction may help to give better form to your body. Longevity of results will depend upon how disciplined you are about your lifestyle. If you care to maintain a healthy diet and activity levels the results may last long. Liposuction is in no way an obesity treatment. Maintaining your weight after the surgery is very important. Few things that you may expect or not expect after the liposuction procedure are as follows:

• While the fat will not accumulate in the operated area after the surgery, but if you are careless and overeat having a sedentary lifestyle you may gain weight after the treatment, and fat would accumulate in the surrounding areas. This would spoil the results.
• Do not expect that this by itself will help reduce cholesterol or decrease risk of heart or kidney disease by way of weight reduction. You will have to address those through experts and maintain a healthy lifestyle.

COST OF THE SURGERY

The Liposuction cost in India depends on many factors such as doctors’ reputation in the field, treatment area, number of fat removal areas targeted etc. More important in choosing a complex procedure is to ensure safety which is when you have an experienced surgeon and good infrastructure. Cosmetic surgery requires great precision and it is cost-worthy if performed by a skilled surgeon.

Dr. Sumit Malhotra

THE INFORMATION IS BEING PROVIDED BY COSMETICSURGERY.IN AND HAVE NO INTENTION TO REPLACE THE MEDICAL ADVICE OF YOUR DOCTOR. PLEASE CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR DIRECTLY FOR ADVICE ABOUT A SPECIFIC MEDICAL CONDITION. THIS DOCUMENT WAS LAST REVIEWED BY DR. Sumit Malhotra, PLASTIC SURGEON ON: 12-JUN-2020