Liposuction - What to Expect From This Interesting Procedure

Liposuction is performed on patients who want to get rid of excess body fat that has not budged even with exercise and low calorie diets. This procedure has become the most commonly requested cosmetic technique in America. It is done through suctioning methods. This isn’t actually a way to lose weight but rather a way to sculpt away unwanted bulges and fatty deposits on the tummy, buttocks, hips and thighs as well as other bodily regions. Fat cells are tricky and complex. Every time a person gains a few pounds, these cells get larger and multiply. Liposuction actually reduces the accumulation of fat cells, also called adipose, in targeted body spots. When a patient decides to vacuum away some adipose, here are some occurrences that he or she should expect:

- How long is the procedure? This will depend on just how much adipose needs to be removed. It could be as short as a half hour or as long as three or four hours. Length of surgery is a highly individualized consideration.

- Will an overnight stay at a hospital be required? Not usually. This is considered to be an outpatient procedure unless it is combined with others such as tummy tuck or body lift.

- Will it hurt? During the surgery, a patient will be given general or local anesthesia with some sort of sedative. These medications will guarantee that no pain is felt during the procedure. There will be some discomfort following lipo but the amount and longevity of it will depend on the patient and how much suctioning took place. A patient will be given pain medication to take home post-op.

- What’s the procedure like? First, a doctor will mark the spots to be suctioned and the skin washed with a special soap. Next, a surgical solution might be injected into the region in order to control bleeding, numb the area and make the adipose more easily harvested. Then, small incisions are made in order to slip in the cannula or medical wand into the areas to vacuum away fat. Afterward, compression garments or bandages are applied to the region to support healing.

- Will one’s body appear svelte on Day 1? No, there will be some healing and recovery time as they body settles into its new fat distribution. There will also be some swelling which could last a couple of months. The average time for a final result to be apparent ranges from three to four months.

- Is this slender appearance permanent? As long as the patient doesn’t gain weight again, this should be a permanent result. An individual should be careful to maintain a healthy lifestyle of proper diet and exercise for life. If patients do gain weight, the distribution of their body may be altered. Their “problem area” may switch from one site to another. If tummy’s were suctioned, hips may become the new “problem area.”

Liposuction is the most popular operation today and the techniques continue to advance. If a person is uncomfortable with his or her bulges, this might be a technique to consider.