Article Medically Reviewed By:
Stephen Hopping, MD
Director of the Center of Cosmetic Surgery Clinical Professor of Surgery, George Washington University Washington, DC
Overview
What Is It?
Liposuction, also called lipoplasty, suction lipectomy or liposculpture, is a cosmetic surgical procedure that vacuums out fat from beneath the skin's surface to reduce fullness in areas such as the abdomen, hips, thighs, knees, buttocks, upper arms, chin, cheeks and neck.
If no amount of diet or exercise removes those stubborn saddlebags on your hips or that paunchy spot on your stomach, you may be able to get rid of that localized area of fat through surgery. Liposuction, also called lipoplasty, suction lipectomy or liposculpture, is a cosmetic surgical procedurethat vacuums out fat from beneath the skin's surface to reduce fullness in areas such as the abdomen, hips, thighs, knees, buttocks, upper arms, chin, cheeks and neck.
Liposuction is the most popular form of cosmetic surgery among both men and women in the United States, with 301,882 procedures performed in 2007, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. First introduced in the United States in 1982, liposuction's popularity increased as refinements to the technique improved results and reduced recovery times. However, rates of the surgery have decreased slightly in the past seven years—down 15 percent from 2000 to 2007.
Although liposuction can produce permanent changes in body contour, it is not a substitute for a healthy low-fat diet and exercise. It will not tighten loose skin or eliminate the shallow surface fat irregularities called cellulite. It is a sculpting technique that can improve body proportions and help make clothing fit better.
Liposuction recontours the body by removing some of the body's finite number of fat cells. It's a myth that when you gain weight, you're adding new fat cells to your body. In fact, each person has a fixed number of fat cells. When you gain weight, those fat cells grow larger, but don't increase in number. When you lose weight, the fat cells shrink. Your genes determine how many and where fat cells are distributed, and some people tend to have more fat cells in some body areas than others. For example, some women have more fat cells in their thighs and hips, instead of a uniform fat distribution. Liposuction can permanently remove some fat cells from such areas. But, the fat cells that remain in the area treated still can grow larger if you gain weight. Many liposuction patients find, however, that newly added weight will not accumulate in the specific areas as it did before and instead distributes more evenly or in different areas. This is why weight gain is inadvisable after liposuction. Liposuction results are best when patients achieve a five- to 15-pound weight loss after the procedure.
There are several variations on the liposuction technique, but those most commonly used involve first infusing the area to...
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