Every year, thousands of men and women choose liposuction to remove the fatty deposits that just won't respond to diet and exercise.
What is Liposuction?
Liposuction is a surgical procedure designed to remove small pockets of excess fat that are resistant to diet and exercise. A small tube called a cannula, connected to a vacuum machine, is inserted into the fatty tissue through tiny incisions placed in inconspicuous locations on the skin. Your surgeon gently moves the cannula around under your skin removing the unwanted fatty deposits. The result is a resculpting of bulging areas into more attractive contours.
Now, a new technique called UAL has been added to complement the traditional forms of liposuction. UAL is performed by our doctor for patients in our region to achieve smoother results, remove difficult fibrous fatty deposits and aspirate more fat.
What is Ultrasonic Liposuction?
Ultrasonically Assisted Lipoplasty complements Tumescent Liposuction. With the Tumescent technique, large volumes of saline solution, local anesthesia, and adrenaline are infused into the area being treated to cause swelling. This enables our physician to go more superficially under the skin. UAL uses high frequency sound waves to liquefy subcutaneous fat cells and facilitate low level aspiration. The ultrasonic energy acts primarily on the fat cells and has no effect on the vascular, nervous, or connective tissues.
What areas can be treated with Ultrasonic Liposuction?
The most frequent areas treated by UAL in men are the love handles, breasts, abdomen and neckline. In women they include: thighs, hips, buttocks, stomach, knees, lower leg, cheeks and double chins. Some women elect to have their fat recycled to other parts of their body using lipo-augmentation.
How are the benefits of Ultrasonic Liposuction measured?
Cosmetically speaking, successful Ultrasonically Assisted Lipoplasty is measured in inches rather than pounds. The weight removed is not as important as the improvement in your body's contour. Most important is our patient's improved self-image and self acceptance.
How will my skin look after Ultrasonic Liposuction surgery?
Dimples, ripples and stretch marks remain unchanged. The changes following liposuction are similar to what you would expect if you could lose an equal amount of localized fat through diet and exercise alone. The use of smaller cannulas allows the fibrous connections between your skin and body to remain. These connections will contract over time. As a result, excessive skin folds are so rare that many patients avoid the necessity for surgical skin excision by having excellent results with Ultrasonically Assisted Lipoplasty alone.
Is the fat removal from Ultrasonic Liposuction permanent?
Yes! It seems that after puberty we do not create new fat cells. When you gain weight, you expand the fat cells that you have. Tumescent liposuction permanently removes fat cells to improve your body's contour. Should you gain weight after liposuction, it goes to the fat cells that remain in your body. The localized fatty deposits that existed prior to liposuction can no longer balloon up out of proportion to the surrounding areas.
Will Ultrasonic Liposuction get rid of cellulite?
UAL is not a treatment for cellulite, although many patients do notice an improvement in the appearance of cellulite after the fat cells are removed.
Who are the best candidates for Ultrasonic Liposuction?
There are no definite weight or age guidelines or restrictions. Most patients have localized fatty deposits, are within thirty pounds of their ideal weight, and have been stable at that weight for years. The best candidates for body sculpting are patients who:
- Have realistic expectations of the procedure.
- Have tried diet, exercise and weight loss programs.
- Are only slightly to moderately overweight.
- Understand liposuction is not a weight loss program.
- Have firm, elastic skin and are in good health.
- Do not expect dramatic lifestyle changes.
- Have disproportionate areas of localized fat.
What will my recovery from Ultrasonic Liposuction be like?
After our doctor performs your UAL procedure, you will wear a snug elastic dressing, girdle, or body stocking over the treated area for the next several weeks. You will go home after the procedure and rest for at least 24 hours, after which you may gradually increase your activity as tolerated. After 2 - 3 days you may resume non-strenuous activities.
Will I need a second Ultrasonic Liposuction procedure?
Most likely one procedure will be sufficient. However, some patients require a fine tuning procedure at a future date.