Liposelection™- Ultrasonic assisted liposuction

Liposelection is an innovative treatment that addresses both women and men who need removal of surplus body fat. Besides this main achievement, the skin also gets tightened following this revolutionary procedure. But unlike in liposuction, the excess skin needs not to be cut off. How come? Because the fibrous tissue structure that naturally holds the skin tight is left intact. The tightening will occur progressively and the final remarkable result can be seen after 4 or 6 months.

The treated sites may be: the waist, abdomen, flanks, hips, thighs, inner knees.

Other advantages brought by liposelection are the short recovery time and the reduced stress on other tissues, the main target being the body fat.

Additionally, liposelection being gentler than traditional liposuction, it can improve the ease and effectiveness of liposuction in fibrous portions of the body (the upper back and flanks or the enlarged male breast).

Here is a brief list of the main benefits of liposelection:

• body fat removal from specific body sites by using ultrasounds and lipoaspiration
• skin tightening without actual cutting
• improvement of skin tonicity
• inconspicuous scars, strategically placed to be hidden from view
• faster recovery
• reduced surgical disturbance of the surrounding nerves and collagen tissues
• risk of general anesthesia avoided
• astonishingly smooth and natural looking body contour
• reduced pain and bruising
• greater confidence and self-esteem

The psychological stress caused by actual invasive surgery will be minimized as well.

PERFORMANCE

There are various liposelection techniques that can be used, but all of them involve two key procedures: the pretreatment with the Vaser™ ultrasound system followed sometimes by fat lipoaspiration.

Here are the main steps taken by the surgeon in the case of liposelection:

• A combination of intravenous salt solution (saline), lidocaine (a local anesthetic) and epinephrine (a drug that contracts blood vessels) is injected in the concerned areas. The degree of numbness provided by this solution will actually last for one to two days after the procedure, increasing the treatment safety. This fluid injection technique is called tumescent liposuction.
• A very small incision is made and a narrow cannula is inserted. This tube will transfer the ultrasound energy to the fatty tissue which will get soft and liquefied. Surgeons will conceal the incisions under underwear lines and in natural creases.
• By using lipoaspiration or liposuction the resulted fat will be suctioned from the body.
• Besides fat, body fluids are also lost. That is why the surgeon will replace this fluid during the procedure in order to prevent dehydration.
• At the end of the procedure, a support garment will be applied to compress and support the operated site.

RISKS

The complications related to this procedure are very rare and usually can be treated.

Risks increase if the following factors are involved:

• many body sites areas are treated at the same time
• the operative area is larger in size
• patients whose medical records show diabetes, significant heart or lung disease, poor blood circulation
• patients who had surgery near the area that needs liposelection

The complications that may occur after liposelection are:

• excessive fluid loss. This can lead to low blood pressure or fluid accumulation that must be drained.
• infections. Infections may happen after any surgery and may occur after liposelection as well. Antibiotics are usually prescribed to all patients even before the infection.
• Embolism. Embolism may occur when fat is loosened and enters the blood through the blood vessels broken during liposuction.
• Skin Laxity, Waviness or Dimpling. The skin may become less elastic and even "baggy" after the liposuction if a large volume of fat has been removed from a large area. Usually this may happen to older patients.
• Minor Depressions. These are small regions that have an opposite appearance from the dimpling described above. They may be over-treated after some time allowed for settling.
• Injury to the nerves, skin or vital organs. Very rarely, the ultrasound energy used to liquefy the fat cells may cause injury to the skin or deeper tissues.
• Asymmetries. Due to removal of more fat from one side compared to the other side (for example, in buttocks), asymmetry may occur.
• Numbness. This will usually disappear in a few months and very rarely will be permanent.
• Scars. The small incisions made with the liposuction tubes are very thin, so the scars will be scarcely visible. However, scarring also depends of the areas where the procedure took place. In the groin and lower limb where the scars cannot be "concealed", the traces may remain noticeable for many months until fading.

QUESTIONS

Before undergoing this cosmetic procedure, the patient would like to talk with the surgeon concerning the technique, risks, preparation, qualification, costs and other issues.

We have listed below some of the most specific questions related to liposelection:

• How is the procedure performed? Are there various techniques?
• Is it more advantageous to perform liposelection instead of liposuction? How different are these procedures?
• Are there other procedures that could be done along with Liposelection surgery?
• Are there alternatives to Liposelection?
• How should I prepare before undergoing the treatment?
• Who qualifies for liposelection?
• What are the risks?
• How many areas can be treated in one operation only?
• When can I resume my normal activities?
• How long will the results last?
• Will I experience pain during or after the operation?
• How will the scars look and heal?
• What instructions should I follow after liposelection?
• Can I have general anesthesia if I want to?