What happens during liposuction

Plastic surgery is becoming increasingly popular; there are clinics all over the world that offer a vast range of cosmetic surgery procedures at competitive prices. Liposuction is one of the most popular procedures, now chosen frequently by both men and women.

Many people say that they want to have liposuction, but they do not realise what is actually involved.

Liposuction.

The patient is placed under a general anaesthetic; the surgeon makes a small incision into the area from which the fat will be removed. The incision is very small, it only needs to be big enough for the cannula (a small hollow tube) to be able to fit in.

The cannula is attached to a machine that creates a vacuum, thus sucking the fat out. The surgeon will move the cannula around whilst it is inside of the patients’ body in order to remove as much fat as possible. The cannula is then removed and the incision is either stitched up or left to heal, this will depend entirely on the surgeon’s preference.

After surgery.

The patient will experience some pain and swelling, but this can usually be treated with medication and will disappear a few days after the procedure.

The patient might be asked to wear a tight fitting girdle for a week or so, this is to prevent bleeding and swelling and also to help your skin adjust to the new body.

The patient will more than likely experience bruising after a couple of weeks, this surprises many people but it is a normal occurrence.

Scars.

One of the most frequently asked questions regarding liposuction is “will I have a scar?”  The incision is very small and a good surgeon will make it in a place that cannot be seen even in a revealing outfit or even a bikini!

Tumescent liposuction.

This is a safer procedure than standard liposuction as the patient does not need to be placed under general anaesthetic.

Lidocane (a local anaesthetic) and epinephrine (a drug that prevents blood loss by temporarily shrinking capillaries) are injected as a solution directly into the area. Once the patient has been injected, a cannula is inserted and connected to the machine to create the vacuum. It is inserted to the fatty layer and moved around by the surgeon in order to remove as much fat as possible.

This procedure can remove fat more uniformly with less risk of asymmetry (uneven fat removal), it also carries less risk of bruising or bleeding.

Risks: As with any type of surgical procedure there are risks involved, the most common being minor indents or irregularities in the skin. Some rare complications include Bowel perforation, blood clots, shock, reduced circulation or infection.