LIPOSUCTION
What is LIPOSUCTION?
This is a surgical operation designed to improve the contour and shape of prominent areas of the body by removing unwanted fat. Liposuction is designed to “spot reduce” the unwanted area of excess fat.
It is not designed to assist in overall body weight loss or control.
Liposuction does not treat or improve skin abnormalities or irregularities.
Skin deformities listed (but not limited to) below are NOT improved with liposuction:
Stretch marks (striae)
Cellulite
Excess skin and skin wrinkling
Dents , dimples ,waves or any contour irregularity within the skin
Skin discoloration or fine veins (telangiectasia) in the skin
Who can have this operation?
The typical patient who is a candidate for a liposuction procedure has little or no excess skin over an area of fat prominence which produces the unwanted contour deformity.
Often the patient has tried numerous diets and exercise regimes to reduce the unwanted fat, neither of which has successfully improved the cosmetic concerns.
Alternatively, a patient may be happy with their weight and life style, but have unwanted contour deformities caused by excess fat in areas that they would like to have removed without changing their weight.
**LIPOSUCTION IS NOT A PROCEDURE FOR AN OVERWEIGHT PATIENT TO REDUCE GENERALIZED EXCESS BODY FAT. IT IS VERY LOCATION SPECIFIC DESIGNED TO “SPOT REDUCE” A SPECIFIC ANATOMIC AREA TO IMPROVE THE CONTOUR IN THAT LOCATION.
This applies to both men and women.
Why do these deformities occur?
People in general will distribute excess fat differently and in different anatomic areas in their body, based on their anatomy and inheritance.
Excess fat may accumulate in unwanted areas, even in patients with an ideal weight:
An example of this is seen in the thin petite woman with prominent outer lateral thighs (saddle bag deformity) despite an ideal body weight.
The typical fat distribution in women and in some men is peripheral. This means the excess fat occurs in the layer between the skin and the underlying muscles.
If there is excess loose or hanging skin overlying the areas of unwanted fat prominence, removing the fat alone with liposuction without dealing with the excess skin will make the area look worse by creating an increase skin redundancy and skin wrinkling.
An example of this is seen in a person who has youthful full cheeks, then becomes ill and loses a considerable amount of weight resulting in an older looking, hollow sunken cheek, with skin wrinkling.
Another example is the arms. If there is excess fat AND skin, by removing the fat only without addressing the excess skin will create a worse deformity like a “bat wing.”
When can Liposuction be done?
The patient’s weight and life style should be stable. Typically, the patient has tried both weight loss and exercise to correct the excess fat, creating the unwanted prominence.
What anatomic areas can you Liposuction?
Any combination of the listed areas below can be liposuctioned at one or more operative sittings.
If the areas and the amount to be liposuctioned are very large, then staging the procedures is done for patient safety and to reduce risks.
The COMMON areas of the body that can be treated with liposuction include:
abdomen
lateral breast and axilla
back & bra line
hips (love handle area)
outer thigh and outer buttocks (saddle bag deformity)
inner thighs
inner knees, calf and ankles
neck and cheeks
Neck and Cheeks:
Younger patients (<35 years old) may have an excess accumulation of fat in the neck and cheek areas. This is most often inherited. It does not respond to weight loss or exercise.
A liposuction procedure can reduce the neck and cheek fat producing a slimmer face and more sculpted neck with a sharper neck jaw line angle. Because of the youthful skin, there is no concern about producing excess redundant skin.
This same fat accumulation can also occur in a heavier patient. In this instance, significant weight loss may produce a reduction in the fat accumulation in the face. Alternatively, a liposuction procedure can reduce the neck and cheek fat producing a slimmer face and more sculpted neck with a sharper neck jaw line angle. If a very large amount of fat is to be removed, there is a risk of excess skin.
Dr. Giuffre would assess the quality and character of the skin over the area to be liposuctioned to determine if the patient is a candidate for liposuction.
In the 35-49 year old patient who has excess neck fat, but has no muscle or excess skin problems, a liposuction procedure may be a reasonable alternative to a facelift procedure depending on the quality of the neck skin. The quality and character of the skin over the area to be liposuctioned will determine whether this patient type is a candidate for liposuction.
In the 50+ year old patient, a heavy neck is most often accompanied by other gravity changes in the face including loss of muscle tone in the neck (the neck muscles start to hang and form cords), loose skin (turkey gobbler deformity), and a descent of the cheek fat along the jaw line (jowls) accompanied by creases from the outer mouth to the jowl (marionette and bitterness lines).
This cannot be corrected with liposuction. A facelift, neck lift procedure addresses this skin, muscle and fat deformity.
**Please See: FAQ Liposuction:Neck & Cheeks ; FAQ Facelift