What You Never Knew About Liposuction

Liposuction got its start in the roaring 1920s when a French surgeon introduced the concept. Unfortunately, the technique was primitive, and although European surgeons tried to perfect it, inconsistent results and negative side effects made it impractical. 

By the 1970s, an Italian surgeon used a blunt tunneling instrument to suction fat cells with repeatable success, and by the 1980s, liposuction hit the United States and became one of the most popular treatments for reducing stubborn fat pockets.

Since then, liposuction has been improved and refined, making it one of the country’s reigning top-five cosmetic surgical procedures. 

And one of the top liposuction specialists — Frederick H. Watkins, MD — offers this body contouring procedure to women and men throughout McLean, Virginia, and Rockville, Maryland. As a board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Watkins brings extensive training and many years of experience to your liposuction procedure. 

Here, Dr. Watkins explains some of the lesser-known facts about liposuction.

Liposuction isn’t for weight loss

Contrary to popular belief, liposuction isn’t intended to help you lose weight, although you will likely lose weight with the procedure. Instead, liposuction is meant to contour your body and smooth out the areas where stubborn fat pockets won’t melt away with diet and exercise.

You should be close to your ideal healthy weight to be a good candidate for liposuction, with a few specific areas you want Dr. Watkins to target. Hips and thighs are popular treatment areas, but Dr. Watkins can use the treatment on nearly any body part.

Liposuction works best when you’re young

There’s no upper age restriction on when you can get liposuction, but if you’re old enough to have skin that’s lost its collagen and elastin store, liposuction may leave you with hanging skin. Collagen is a fibrous protein that gives your skin structure and resilience, and elastin gives it stretchability, but both proteins wane as you age. 

Liposuction is surgery

Most don’t realize that liposuction is a surgical procedure. Depending on your treatment area size and location, you may require local or general anesthesia. Dr. Watkins makes a small incision in your skin where he inserts a tubular cannula that tunnels under your skin to the fat pocket. 

As with all surgeries, you aren’t a good candidate for liposuction if you smoke. 

Liposuctioned fat may be used elsewhere

In some cases, Dr. Watkins takes the fat he suctions from one place on your body, purifies it, and injects it into another area. This treatment, called fat transfer, is the first step in the popular Brazilian butt lift procedure. The combination can, for example, flatten your abdomen and give you curvier hips, balancing your proportions. 

Liposuction has various techniques

Dr. Watkins has extensive experience performing liposuction procedures and offers the latest techniques. All techniques begin with either a local anesthetic or general anesthesia, an injection of sterile saline, and a dose of adrenaline to reduce post-procedure bruising and bleeding.

The amount of saline solution Dr. Watkins injects classifies your procedure as either tumescent or super-wet. The tumescent technique injects about three times more saline than the fat volume, and the super-wet method uses less liquid — roughly equal to the fat volume.

Dr. Watkins performs the two main liposuction procedures currently available, suction-assisted lipectomy (SAL) and ultrasonic-assisted lipectomy (UAL).

Suction-assisted lipectomy 

SAL uses a cannula to break up your fat cells as Dr. Watkins moves it back and forth under your skin. Once the fat is loose, he suctions it out through the cannula.

Ultrasonic-assisted lipectomy

UAL uses ultrasonic vibrations to liquify your fat cells so Dr. Watkins can suction them out. He may use an external or internal device to send the ultrasonic energy into your fat stores. 

Liposuction is well-suited for women and men

Liposuction has a reputation as a treatment for women, but many men enjoy the benefits too. The most common treatment areas men request are the waist, chin, love handles, and chest. 

If you’re interested in liposuction to refine your body’s contours and boost your confidence, contact us at Frederick H. Watkins, MD, online or by phone to schedule a consultation at our location most convenient to you.