4 Liposuction: The Truth about Fat

• Liposuction dominates modern cosmetic surgery as the most commonly performed procedure.
• The old surgeries for fat and skin removal, such as the "tummy tuck," are significantly more risky than liposuction alone. Cosmetic results may also be inferior compared to skilled liposuction.
• Recovery is usually reasonable, with most people back to work within just a few days to a week, depending on the circumstances.
• Liposuction isn't a surgical cure for overeating, but is useful in the treatment of some overweight people along with exercise and diet.
• Contrary to popular belief, fat can return to the treated areas.
• Small-scale study has shown large volume liposuction to improve diabetes (view article for details).

Liposuction is chosen by all ages and all types of people: men, women, models and actors, teenagers, and athletes. Some men even use it to produce "washboard abs," the sculptured abdominal muscles favored by body builders. The liposuction procedure has changed dramatically since it was first introduced in 1979. What began as a high-risk surgery requiring routine blood transfusions and often a lengthy hospital stay has evolved into a simpler procedure usually performed in an outpatient surgery center. In the early days, patients were hospitalized for up to seven days. General anesthesia was used (which itself presented risk), bleeding was often heavy, post-operative pain was excruciating, and bruising lasted for many weeks. Patients often stayed in bed for several weeks. With all that in mind, added to the negative media reports, popular opinion held that liposuction was a bizarre, complicated and expensive procedure.

Modern liposuction, by comparison, is completely different. It is usually virtually painless. Bleeding, infection and other complications are rare. Unfortunately, many of the old myths still live on, and realistic information is hard to come by. Let's look at the differences between today's procedures and yesterday's: