Liposuction

History of Liposuction

Liposuction, also known as Lipoplasty or simply 'Lipo', is a cosmetic surgery procedure designed to remove excess fat from the body. Areas such as the buttocks, thighs and abdomen which are prone to the build up of fatty desposits are most commonly treated using this technique although this procedure is also performed on smaller or more isolated areas such as the chin or neck.
Fat removal techniques were first developed in the 1970's and have grown dramatically in popularity. Today there are hundreds of highly qualified surgeons performing liposuction on thousands of patients every year.
Whilst in many cases the amount of fat that is removed from each patient is actually quite small, the fat remodelling or contouring techniques that are used produce figure changing and slimming results. Liposuction treatments are performed after a consultation with a doctor and the treatment will be adapted according to the patient's individual health and biometric data. Certain levels of fat are necessary within the body to maintain healthy organs and mobility. Slimmer patients will therefore face greater limitations to the scale of fat removal permitted than patients with higher volumes of excess fat.
Prior to undergoing any cosmetic surgery it is important to fully understand the associated risks and possible complications. Liposuction is a relatively safe and straightforward procedure and complications are rare although some do arise. The dangers linked to liposuction are risk of infection, adverse reation to the anesthetic and blood clotting. Less severe side effects include bruising, scarring and changes to skin pigmentation.
Removing too much fat from a particular area in one go can result in sagging in the skin or produce lumps or dents, similar to cellulite in appearance although more pronounced. Some procedures therefore are conducted over a number of sessions on different days to allow the body to heal and reduce the risk to the body from the anesthetic.
There are some non-surgical alternatives to liposuction including laser treatment and an injection technique.

Lipodissolve

Lipodissolve is a method where chemicals are injected into targetted areas and begin dissolving or breaking down the fat content within the body. The fat is then dispatched from the body via the patients urine. This technique is most commonly used on the face and neck.

Thermage

Thermage is a laser technique that melts body fat and stimulates collagen within the patients skin.