You’ve probably seen its effects, and you’ve certainly heard about it, but do you really know what liposuction is? If you’ve ever considering getting it for yourself, the first thing you want to do is get the facts about its purposes, its effectiveness, and its risks.
So, first things first. What is liposuction? In a nutshell, it is a cosmetic surgery that uses a vacuum pump to break down and remove pockets of fat from underneath the skin. It is a relatively fast and painless procedure, but it does have some limits-most notably, it should not be used to try to remove more than ten pounds of fat at any one time.
Because of this, liposuction is not a cure for obesity. In order to achieve the best possible results and avoid risking your health, most surgeons recommend that potential liposuction candidates be relatively healthy individuals who are within twenty-five pounds of their ideal body weight. Patients who are healthier to start with tend to experience fewer complications during surgery and have fewer side effects afterward.
Another important thing to know about liposuction is that it is not an effective long-term weight loss strategy. In other words, your post-liposuction weight and figure is not necessarily permanent. If you don’t take good care of yourself, including maintaining a healthful diet and regular exercise, you won’t keep your new weight and figure for long.
Contrary to anything you might have heard, liposuction is also not an effective solution to cellulite. Since cellulite occurs as a result of fatty pockets just underneath the skin and liposuction generally targets fatty deposits deeper down, most patients do not notice any difference in the appearance of cellulite on their skin.
Liposuction is minimally invasive and really quite safe, but it is still surgery, so you will need to plan on a certain amount of recovery time. Exactly how much time in necessary will depend on your health, the type of liposuction you get and how skillful your surgeon is, but you should plan on just resting for at least a day or two after getting liposuction performed. Most patients are able to return to work after one to three weeks, and the swelling and bruising usually disappear in the first few months.
Side effects will likely include. some post-op discomfort, swelling, and bruising. More serious surgical complications in liposuction are rare, but can include fluid loss, blood clots, and infection.