New Jersey Liposuction for Fat Removal

Parker Center in Paramus, New Jersey

Liposuction, also known as liposculpture, suction lipectomy/ lipoplasty or suction assisted lipectomy is one of the most commonly performed cosmetic surgery procedures in the United States. According to statistics released by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 245,138 patients underwent liposuction in 2008; 89% of these were women, 11% men.

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Subcutaneous fatty tissue is located throughout the body between the skin and underlying muscles. It is a well defined layer which serves to insulate us from temperature changes, creates softness as well as protects and hides the angularity of our bones. Excess fatty tissue is deposited in certain areas of the body based on our genetics, gender and body weight. Women will complain of excess fat in the inner and outer thighs (“saddle bags”); men never have it deposited in these locations. Even female marathon runners with low body fat will complain about pesky bulges in these areas. You can change your size through weight loss, but your shape will stay relatively the same.

Liposuction in New Jersey is an excellent way to remove these diet and exercise resistant fatty deposits and improve your size and shape. Improving their contours with liposuction will allow patients to look more proportional and wear clothes they previously could not. Psychologically, after liposuction, patients experience a sense of improved self esteem, enhanced body image and feel more self confident. Liposuction is commonly used to treat the neck, breast, abdomen, back, flanks, hips, thighs, arms, knees, calves and ankles. It is equally effective in men and women.

Fat removal with liposuction is permanent. The body does not manufacture new fat cells after puberty. Patients gain or lose weight by altering the amount of fat in each cell but not the absolute number of cells. While it is still possible to gain weight after liposuction, the fat is deposited more evenly throughout the body. It does not selectively relocate to the areas which underwent liposuction. Think of liposuction as a body re-proportioning procedure.

New Jersey Liposuction Candidates

The best candidates in New Jersey for liposuction are patients near their ideal body weight with localized fat deposits. If you don’t fit this ideal profile and still want to consider liposuction, don’t worry. Although the ideal patient will usually achieve an excellent result, patients with less than ideal criteria often obtain a very good result. Liposuction can provide an incentive for further weight loss in those patients who are slightly or moderately overweight.

Liposuction can’t help with generalized obesity, intra abdominal fat or very loose skin. It is complementary to diet and exercise, not a substitute for it.

Good skin tone is one of the mainstays of successful liposuction results. The better the skin tone, the better the skin will contract to fit the newly contoured fat following the procedure. Certain areas of the body have good skin tone. For example in most women the hips, outer thighs, knees and back all have good skin tone.

“I was especially pleased with the staff’s attention post-op. Nurse spent much time with me to make sure I was comfortable. I enjoyed post-op massage!!!” —Liposuction Patient

Loose skin is characterized by poor elasticity. Liposuction can improve overall shape in patients with loose skin but it will not improve their skin laxity. In these cases, removal of excess skin with or without liposuction is more appropriate then liposuction itself. For example, women with poor skin tone of the inner thighs will get a better result with an inner thigh lift than liposuction. Patients with loose abdominal skin and stretch marks will not undergo significant skin contraction after liposuction. They would experience a better result with an abdominoplasty (tummy tuck). Dr. Parker will carefully evaluate your skin tone with you during your initial consultation and discuss treatment options as well.

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Cellulite is unattractive dimpling and puckering of the skin frequently seen in the thighs and buttocks. It increases with age. Liposuction alone will not improve cellulite. We have, however, experienced good results in some patients with cellulite by releasing the puckered areas with a “pickle fork” and injecting their own fat to prevent recurrence of the problem.

New Jersey Liposuction Surgery and Recovery

Liposuction in New Jersey is performed in our fully certified on site ambulatory surgical facility, Surgiplex. Patients are made comfortable with monitored intravenous sedation or general anesthesia, depending on how many areas are being treated. A dilute local anesthetic solution (referred to as the super wet technique) is injected into the subcutaneous tissue to minimize blood loss. Two very small access incisions (each ~ 1/8’ long) are used for each area being treated. The use of two access incisions, usually 90 degrees apart from one another, is helpful in providing a smooth, natural appearing contour (analogous to mowing a lawn in two directions).

A solid VASER ultrasonic probe is inserted through the access incisions to emulsify fat in the areas being treated. A loss of resistance between the probe and surrounding fatty tissue indicates the end point of fat emulsification has been reached. Thin cannulae are then used to evacuate the emulsified fat from the treatment areas, allowing Dr. Parker to sculpture the contour he wishes to achieve. This is a very important part of the procedure. While the VASER system is very helpful to Dr. Parker, it is the training, experience and judgment of the surgeon which allows them to create beautiful contours and excellent results. Removal of fat ceases once the desired shape has been achieved.

The amount of fat removed from each area is measured and compared to the opposite side when treating two areas such as the hips, thighs, etc. The tiny incisions are closed with dissolving sutures. Although these scars are permanent, they are almost always inconspicuous. The patient is placed in a snug fitting surgical garment to support the suctioned areas, promote skin contraction and help optimize final contour.

Liposuction lasts from 30 minutes to several hours depending on how many areas are being treated. Patients are most often discharged within two hours of surgery. Patients who have a significant amount of fat removed (> 5000 cc liposuction aspirate) are monitored overnight in our facility by a registered nurse. There is usually little pain associated with liposuction (patients usually describe it “like over exercising at the gym”). The compression garment can be removed to shower the day following surgery. It is most often worn for one to three weeks, depending on the patient’s skin tone and areas of the body treated. Patients commonly return to activities of daily living within several days including a return to work. Exercise usually begins within one to two weeks.

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