Liposuction is the most popular cosmetic surgical procedure in the country with over 414,000 liposuction procedures done in 2016, beating out breast augmentation, tummy tuck, and eyelid surgery. Liposuction is a safe and reliable way to permanently remove fat that hasn’t responded to diet and exercise to contour the body.
If you’re considering body contouring, you may be wondering, is liposuction right for me? Here are the pros and cons of liposuction, as well as an alternative, to help you decide.
Pros of Liposuction
• It’s effective – and permanent. Liposuction not only permanently removes fat from an area, but it also prevents fatty deposits from accumulating in that same area in the future.
• It’s safe. Liposuction is considered a very safe procedure with a low complication rate (less than 1%) when done on its own. Tumescent Liposuction was pioneered by dermatologist Jeffrey Klein. This technique has proven to be the safest method as it only uses local anesthesia and doesn’t require you to be “put under”. Of course, this also depends on where you have it done and by whom; choose a qualified physician to perform it in a medical setting to reduce your likelihood of complications. We perform all of our procedures in our fully accredited O.R.s
• Results are usually visible within months. Most people will start to see results within several weeks after the procedure, though it can take six months or more for the full results to be apparent.
Cons of Liposuction
• There are risks and side effects. Like all surgical procedures, liposuction does come with some side effects and risks, including infection, scarring, bruising, swelling, skin rippling, worsening of cellulite, and numbness. The more severe rare risks include puncturing of internal organs, pulmonary edema, and pulmonary embolism have been associated with general anesthesia.
• It’s not cheap. Liposuction is only covered by health insurance in rare cases where there’s a medical necessity. Otherwise, it’s self-pay, with an average cost of a little over $3,000 for one area, according to 2017 statistics from The American Society of Plastic Surgeons. This amount doesn’t include other fees like anesthesia and room charges.
• It’s not a weight loss strategy. This isn’t exactly a con, but it’s important to understand that liposuction is not a weight loss strategy. The purpose of liposuction is to contour the body, but should not be thought of as a replacement for diet and exercise.
An Effective Alternative to Liposuction
I’ve done liposuction for many years and I still do at my practice. At PotozkinMD Skincare Center, we offer tumescent liposuction, which is considered one of the safest forms of liposuction.
But increasingly, patients who come to us opt for CoolSculpting, which is a non-invasive yet very effective alternative to liposuction that uses extremely cold temperatures to kill fat cells. You can learn more about CoolSculpting on our blog here (link to previous blog).
Is Liposuction Right for You?
As with any surgical procedure, it’s important to take your time to gather the facts and explore alternatives before deciding to go ahead with liposuction. Hopefully you learned something and feel more confident answering the question, “is liposuction right for me?”
If you are interested in liposuction or CoolSculpting, visit our website to learn more and to book an appointment!