Who can benefit from liposuction?

The best candidates for liposuction are those people who are of normal weight but who have problem areas of fat which dieting and exercising doesn’t respond to, greater effects are seen when the skin should have elasticity and you should be in good overall physical health to be considered for surgery of this type.

The treatment and recovery

Depending on the type and amount of liposuction needed the surgery can be done on an outpatient basis or it may require a short hospital stay, liposuction is normally performed using a local anaesthetic where only the area being treated is numbed. However if the liposuction is extensive and several body parts are going to benefit then a general anaesthetic will be used.

The time for the procedure will vary greatly depending on the areas that are to be covered and the amount of excess body fat to be removed. The procedure involves using a tube or cannula through a very small insertion made into the body, a vacuum is then used to suction out the fat which lies deep under the skin.

If other areas of the body are to receive the treatment then the surgeon will progress over the body making a small insertion and then sucking out the body fat beneath. Along with the fat, some fluid is also lost and so during and immediately after the surgery you will be given fluids via an intravenous drip, some surgeons use a relatively new advancement and inject fluid into the fatty areas before the fat is removed.

The fluid is made up of a salt solution, an anaesthetic and a solution that helps the blood vessels to contract and this also helps the fat to be removed more easily and can help with the prevention of bruising.

The scars from the liposuction will only be small and will be barely noticeable but you are likely to notice some fluid drainage from them for a short while after the procedure. Very occasionally, the surgeon might insert a drainage tube beneath the skin for a couple of days to assist with any fluid drainage.

Your surgeon may also have you fitted with a snug elastic garment which they will ask you to wear for a couple of weeks; you may also have to take a course of antibiotics to help prevent infection. It will be quite normal for you to experience some pain, swelling, numbness or tingling during the first week and you will probably feel a little stiff and sore.

Many people find that they are fit and well enough to return to work after around a week or so and most of the bruising and swelling will have gone after three weeks or so but some minor swelling can occur for up to six months depending on the extent of the surgery.

Are there any risks to this type of procedure?

Patients will still face the normal risks that any patient may be faced with whenever they have any type of surgical procedure, risks specifically associated with the tumescent technique although rare do exist.

Pulmonary oedema is one risk associated with this technique, this happens when there is a collection of fluid in the lungs. Lidocaine toxicity can also occur if the solution which is used for the procedure contains too much Lidocaine.

How is the technique performed?

The tumescent liquid which is a mixture of Lidocaine, epinephrine and intravenous fluid will be warmed and will then be injected into the area which the surgeon is treating. When the liquid reaches the fat, it becomes swollen and firm making the insertion of the cannula easier, the liposuction procedure is then performed on the area.

As the solution has anaesthesia included in it, there is no need for additional anaesthesia this also helps to provide pain relief after the procedure and decreases the need for additional pain medication.

For a day or two following the procedure, you are likely to experience a little pain and swelling in the area treated, however this is perfectly normal and this will gradually ease.

You may also notice some fluid weeping from the sites where the injections were given. You can normally resume normal activity within a few days and you should be back to normal within a couple of weeks of having the procedure.