Local fatty deposits can form in various areas of the body and, despite a strict diet or exercise regime, are very hard to shift. Lipoaspiration can eradicate such deposits once and for all.
It can be applied to a large number of areas around the body – such as the “saddlebags”, hips, belly, thighs, knees, calves, ankles, arms. Thanks to improvements in techniques, it can also be used on the face and neck, to reduce a double chin or to bring more oval harmony to the face.
The procedure involves making minute incisions using blunt, not sharp, cannulas which are perforated at their tip. These cannulas are connected to a closed circuit which creates slight negative pressure allowing for smooth and trauma-free suction of excess fatty cells. Where these fatty cells are unable to multiply, there can be no recurrence.
But watch out! Liposuction is not a weight loss method and its aim is not to control a patient’s weight: and lipoaspiration does not allow a patient to circumvent improvements in a healthy lifestyle. Nor is liposuction to be used to treat obesity.
Every clinic and surgeon uses different techniques and apparatus for liposuction. Dr P Quinodoz operates in clinics possessing the most up to date apparatus. Whether the procedure requires a stay in hospital depends upon the amount of fat to be removed. A stay can range from several hours and the patient can be home on the same day, to one to two days where the procedure is more involved. After the operation, the patient needs to wear a support band for at least one month. Normal activities can be resumed during the first week and some physiotherapy for lymphatic drainage is recommended. The elasticity of the patient’s own skin will determine the final result. Progressive improvement towards a new figure is noted within 3 to 9 months, but in fact the improvement is already quite spectacular from as early as the 3rd week after surgery.
It is necessary to bear in mind that, while it has been trivialized somewhat over recent years, liposuction is a true surgical procedure which must be carried out by a competent and qualified plastic surgeon, trained in this technique.
Non-surgical treatments do exist to deal with particular, localized clusters of fat. Do not hesitate to ask your aesthetic surgeon about non-surgical corrective procedures.