About Liposuction


Liposuction Defined
Liposuction is defined as the removal of fat deposits beneath the skin using a hollow stainless steel tube (called a cannula) with the assistance of a powerful vaccum. Liposuction at CHP is accomplished with local anesthetic (tumescent fluid) and is done in combination with our cutting-edge Smartlipo™ laser and/or our LipoSelect® ultrasound machine(s). Our patients are never put to sleep.


Tumescent Liposuction
Tumescent liposuction refers to a technique that uses large volumes of very dilute local anesthesia that is injected into the fat causing the targeted areas to become tumescent, or swollen and firm. Local anesthesia is widely regarded as the safest form of anesthesia. Post Op, patients typically will take Extra Strength Tylenol for pain.


Smartlipo Laser Body Sculpting,™ Laserlipolysis

As more women and men want to look and feel better about them selves, body contouring and lipo-sculpture continue to grow in popularity, making liposuction the most popular cosmetic surgery performed today.

SmartLipo™ is the first and only laser-assisted lipolysis system to offer a revolutionary and minimally invasive procedure for the removal of fat. Using a high-powered laser, Smartlipo is the new liposuction procedure with less down time and side effects than traditional liposuction.


How does the SmartLipo™ procedure work?

A very small cannula or tube that measures only 1.0mm to 2.0mm in diameter is inserted through the skin into subcutaneous tissue. The cannula that contains the laser fiber is moved back and forth and delivers the laser’s energy to the fat cells and the dermis. Subsequently, the fat cells melt or are vaporized and are easily drained way.

The laser energy provides further benefit by interacting with the dermis layer of skin, resulting in collagen tightening, while enhancing the production of new collagen.


LipoSelect® by Vaser® (Using Vaser- 3rd generation ultrasound unit)
LipoSelection® only by Vaser® combines new patented technology with advanced surgical techniques to break up and melt fatty tissue. Unwanted fat can be efficiently removed from abs, arms, back, hips, knees, love handles, neck, chin, saddlebags and thighs.

The Vaser system uses a state-of-the-art ultrasound probe that melts fat, leaving surrounding tissue (such as nerves, blood vessels and connective tissue) relatively intact. The liquified fat is then removed through our gentle suctioning process, through which damage to surrounding tissue is further minimized.

Power-Assisted Liposuction (PAL)
The power-assisted liposuction (PAL) technique features a cannula that vibrates at 4000 vibrations/minute to easily break up the fat for suctioning.  This technique is widely used today, but has been replaced at CHP by Smartlipo and LipoSelection.


Tumescent Technique is Safest
The tumescent technique for liposuction is unquestionably the safest form of liposuction. When tumescent liposuction is done correctly (not excessively), it is a very safe procedure. For example, there have been no reported deaths associated with tumescent liposuction totally by local infiltration anesthesia. The dilute epinephrine contained in the tumescent anesthetic solution profoundly shrinks capillaries and thus virtually eliminates surgical blood loss.


Garments
Compressive garments are worn for a period of time to augment the reattachment of skin to the underlying surface and to aid in the molding of the contour of the body.


Liposuction Complications and Safety
Patients can develop seromas (a collection of lymphatic fluid) which must be drained. Patients can also develop skin irregularities, hematomas can also occur, or numbness of the skin. Liposuction should be done without general anesthesia. Most life-threatening complications have been associated with the use of general anesthesia (being put to sleep) leading to excessive blood loss, perforation of organs due to penetration the abdominal cavity causing damage to abdominal organs, including intestines, liver, stomach, etc. The important thing to remember that 97% of these kinds of complications are associated with General anesthesia, which is not administered at Centers for Health Promotion. Dr. Reynolds has performed more than 30,000 procedures without any significant complication.