Laser Liposuction Treatments to Avoid or Remove Skin Bumps, Depressions, and Swelling for Smooth Skin after Liposculpture and Body Contouring Surgery
Before and after picture of laser tummy tuck using laser liposuction.
One of the most frustrating things for people who have had liposuction treatments, body sculpting or liposculpture is the appearance of lumps, bumps and depressions or wavy lines in the skin which appear on the skin often six months or a year after the liposuction treatment. These skin irregularities are called contour deformities and are quite common following traditional liposuction and liposculpture body contouring surgery. Some studies have shown that as many as 20% of people who have had liposculpture or suction body contouring treatments have contour deformities after healing.
Before on left note contour deformities left by a prior liposuction done elesewhere without the laser. On the right notice the smooth contour of the tummy area after laser liposcution technique.
Another common problem is loose skin left after liposculpture surgery. New laser assisted liposuction treatments can be used to correct contour deformities and smooth the skin. Let’s first understand what causes lumps, bumps and skin irregularities after liposculpture and traditional suction methods.
What causes contour deformities, lumps, bumps, swelling and loose skin after liposuction surgery ?
In the traditional liposuction procedure without the laser a metal tube is placed beneath the skin and fat is suctioned out with a powerful suction machine. Since the surgeon has no direct vision of the uniformity of fat removal, often small pieces or lumps of fat are missed or left behind. These areas of fat that are not removed become visible bumps, lumps or swellings after healing and can appear as skin irregularities called contour deformities on the skin after the body sculpting procedure.
Sometimes the fat removal tube, called a cannula, is placed too close to the underside of the skin and too much fat is removed. If this happens a depression or divot appears on the skin where too much tissue was removed. This divot can create a wavy line or depression or divot in the skin beside any lump, bump or swelling that has been left behind.
Following the removal of fat from beneath your skin, the skin must tighten down over the tummy, hip or other area where fat beneath the skin has been removed. Skin naturally shrinks after weight loss or pregnancy. However as we age our skin loses elasticity and does not tighten as well after fat has been removed from beneath the skin.
In people with less skin elasticity, usually older people or people who are obese or overweight, the skin does not tighten after the surgical treatment. These patients are left with loose sagging skin as well as lumps, bumps and swelling, on the tummy, hips and thighs after suction body contouring. Many people feel these skin deformities look as bad as or worse than the area looked before surgery.
How does laser liposuction prevent skin irregularities and loose skin after surgery?
The laser melts or liquefies the fat beneath the skin into a thin liquid during the treatment. A tiny laser fiber is inserted beneath the skin and fat melting is done before any suction is used to remove fat. Since the fat has been converted to a thin liquid, removal is much easier than with traditional liposculpture techniques. Very tiny cannulas can be used to aspirate or remove the liquid fat. Because larger high pressure cannulas are not used, it is unusual to remove too much fat, or isolated chunks of tissue from beneath the skin, so divots and depressions are less likely.
Because the laser fiber melts the fat, it is very easy to move through the tissues, which is much less traumatic to the skin during the treatment. Because the procedure is gentle, in my opinion a more accurate and complete procedure is possible. In my experience I have not seen lumps or bumps of fat left behind after this new high tech method for fat removal and liposculpture.
The heat from the laser also tightens the skin as the fat is removed. Skin tightening prevents loose skin post operatively. This new treatment has produced remarkable skin tightening in even older patients who have had significant fat removal.
Am I a good candidate for liposuction?
Surgical fat removal is not a solution for obesity or being overweight. Only proper nutritional dieting, exercise, or gastric bypass surgery can correct morbid obesity.
These surgical methods for fat removal and body contouring are best suited for people who are fit, not significantly overweight and have small areas of extra fat in specific parts of the body. Some fat pockets simply cannot be removed with diet and exercise. These are called deep or brown fat and are specialized fat cells that store nutrition that can be used during periods of starvation.
There are very typical areas where these fat deposits occur and the areas are different in men and women. In men, these fat deposits occur in the tummy area and around the waist, often called the spare tire. In women, these extra fat deposits occur typically in the hips and thigh areas. Both men and women develop fat under the chin on the neck, often referred to as the double chin.
Younger people with good skin elasticity and localized fat deposits in the areas mentioned above will have the best results following suction body contouring treatments.
Who should do my liposuction treatment?
My strong recommendation is that you consult two plastic surgeons that are certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. You can visit their website to find a plastic surgeon in your area. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons and the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons also have very informative websites. The American Society of Lasers in Medicine and Surgery is an organization to which most plastic surgeons that specialize in laser plastic surgery belong.
If you are interested in sculpting a new body and are a good candidate, the remarkable new light based liposuction is something you should investigate. See before and after pictures of laser liposuction results in other body areas.
For more information on laser liposuction call 978-369-4499 or email us. Read our free newsletter for the latest information on new non-surgical facial and body rejuvenation techniques.
Dr Seckel
Concord, Massachusetts
Boston, Massachusetts