Lipoplasty cosmetic surgery - risks, benefits and ideal candidates

Lipoplasty is simply a more technical term for what is commonly known as liposuction. Lipoplasty is a procedure that removes fat from unwanted areas of the body. The device that is used to perform a lipoplasty is like a tiny vacuum that sucks fat out of the body. Lipoplasty is commonly used for what is called “body contouring.” This involves the use of a cannula (the tube that sucks up the fat) to help change the body’s shape.

It is important to have realistic expectations before you have lipoplasty performed. Although liposuction is used on individuals for weight loss, it cannot remove all excess fat on the body. In fact, removing more than 25% of fat from one area of the body during a lipoplasty operation can be fatal.

The main intention of treatment with liposuction is to sculpt the body by removing part of the extra fat. Fat that is not removed (the remaining 75% of any area) may also be pushed and reshaped using the head of the cannula or the head of the cannula in combination with some other type of sculpting tool such as a scalpel.

Lipoplasty is most useful for the treatment of a few select areas that need refining and minimal fat removed. Lipoplasty is an appropriate technique for removing fat from beneath the chin, under the arms, the outer breasts, the belly, hips, flanks and thighs. Liposculpture is the term used when the liposuction device is used to remove small amounts of fat to contour such things as cheekbones or the muscle definition of the calves. Liposculpture, which is a form of lipoplasty, is also used to touch up and refine the results of another operation such as a face lift or tummy tuck.

Lipoplasty is not recommended for individuals who need a great volume or area of fat to be removed. A lipoplasty is also not recommended for obese individuals who are over 50% of their normal body weight. A weight management program might be prescribed for these individuals instead. Money-wise, lipoplasty cost depends on the particular procedure and its intensity. Ultrasound lipoplasty is considered to be a sophisticated and cost-intensive plastic surgery.

In cases where large amounts of fat need to be removed, more orthodox “cut and stitch” forms of plastic surgery might be more appropriate such as a neck lift, thigh lift or buttock lift. Most often lipoplasty is performed in conjunction with these operations to achieve the most attractive results.

Individuals with a serious underlying disease such as cancer may be discouraged from having this type of cosmetic surgery. Liposuction is also risky for individuals with vascular, heart or nerve problems. If you are a smoker you will be advised to quit smoking before you have the operation to minimize the risk of bleeding and to expedite healing.

It is also important to be realistic about the role that lifestyle plays when it comes to relying on lipoplasty for weight loss. If you have a lipoplasty to remove fat but fail to change your eating or exercise habits you will just end up getting the operation a second time to remove the new fat you have gained as a result of failing to eat a healthy diet and exercise.

During the most common form of lipooplasty called “wet lipoplasty”, the plastic surgeon makes an incision on the appropriate area on the body and the area beneath the skin is flushed out with lidocaine (a local anesthetic), saline (salt water) and epinephrine (a drug that narrows blood vessels and prevents bleeding during surgery.) Then fatty tissue (known as fascia) is suctioned out from beneath the skin’s surface with a wand that resembles a small vacuum hose. This hose is called the cannula. Depending on how large the area is to be vacuumed by the cannula, the patient may have skin removed or “pulled up” with surgery and secured by surgical stitches.

It is important to realize that a lipoplasty alone cannot correct sagging skin. In fact a lipoplasty often leads to a bumpy appearance beneath the skin that resembles cellulite. It can also lead to folding skin and sagging skin. Sometimes a second operation is required after six months or so to remove these effects which are simply the result of what happens when the skin loses its underlying volume of fat.

Like all plastic surgery, liposuction does come with some serious risks including the risk of bruising, bleeding, disfiguration, scars and infection. Also, if the plastic surgeon’s use of the cannula is careless, it can cause permanent depressions and dimpling of the skin.

As there are so many different kinds of liposuction, the surgeon will usually develop a game plan with regards to the best type of liposuction to be used in your case. Usually regular liposuction is used for smaller operations where a minimal amount of fat removal and contouring must be done. Liposculpture is reserved for detailed work such as shaping cheekbones or eyes. Ultrasonic liposuction is for heavy-duty use on areas that contain a large volume of fat such as the thigh, belly and breasts.