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Laser Liposuction Risks

For a long time liposuction has been one of the most popular of plastic surgery procedures. With the introduction of laser assisted liposuction the procedure opened up an option to a whole new market of people who have considered smaller treatment that did not warrant the full risks and surgical procedure that comes with traditional liposuction. Laser liposuction offers many benefits and further reduces the risks of a procedure already generally regarded as a relatively safe cosmetic enhancement procedure.

The Concept of Liposuction Surgery

The difference between laser liposuction and traditional liposuction is in the technique. The concept of liposuction remains intact with laser liposuction. Fat cells are broken from underneath the skin and loose fat is sucked up through a tube known as a cannula.

Traditional vs. Laser Liposuction Technique

Laser liposuction uses an optic fiber through which a laser is beamed. The heat generated by the laser literally melts the fat and a small cannula is inserted into the area to remove the liquefied fat. This is a much gentler form of fat removal.

Traditional liposuction causes more stress to the surrounding tissue because physical force is used to break up fat cells. The tube used to suck out the loose fat is larger than the one used in the laser technique.

The size differential of the equipment involved speaks a lot to the scale of the surgery. Laser liposuction is useful for small scale procedures that could not be performed in the past because the traditional method is relatively brutal compared to the finesse and accuracy of using a laser charged optic fiber.

Common Liposuction Risks

Being a more gentle and precise procedure, laser liposuction reduces or even eliminates some of the most common problems that have historically plagued liposuction procedures.

Bleeding Risks

One of the biggest problems that surgeons have reported is the excessive bleeding during the surgery. In many instances a blood transfusion is required to supplement the patient’s blood loss. Meanwhile, using a laser greatly reduces this problem because the procedure causes less damage to surrounding tissue and the small amount of blood that might leak from damaged capillaries are often dried by the heat of the laser.

Improper drainage of leaked fluids is the biggest contributor to complications that hamper the recovery period. It can cause hematomas or seromas where blood pools under the skin to cause a visible discoloration or color spots. Patients of laser assisted liposuction can expect to recover much faster as a result of the reduced blood loss.

Surgical Risks of Liposuction

Although rare, serious surgical risks such as internal organ damage are a very real possibility. This is not an issue with the laser technique. Risk of infection to the incision area is also much reduced because the equipment is much smaller and therefore requiring a small incision. That also shortens the required recovery period and reduces the possibility of unintentional scarring.

Anesthesia Risks

Anesthesia related risks are always an issue with any surgery. There is a danger in improper dosage as well as using the wrong solution. A certified anesthesiologist is required for large doses which can be expensive. Laser liposuction patients usually only require local anesthesia meaning only the treated area is numbed. This means the patient is awake during the procedure so any excessive discomfort can be communicated to the surgeon while the surgery is in progress.

Side Effects of Liposuction

Some of the most common problems with liposuction, though not particularly dangerous but aesthetically unpleasing is skin irregularities. This happens when too much fat under the skin is removed leaving grooves and dimples in the skin. The way to avoid this is by dividing a large treatment into smaller multiple treatments. That way smaller amount of fat is removed at a time. The risk of skin irregularities is not an issue with laser liposuction because the method in itself is a small scale procedure.

Managing Plastic Surgery Risks

All surgery comes with inherent risks and liposuction is no exception. Liposuction, with laser or traditional method, is a procedure to remove pockets of fat in areas that are hard to eliminate through exercise and dieting alone. It is not a weight loss strategy and should not be treated as such. Any patient considering the procedure must understand the limitations and risks of cosmetic surgery. Unrealistic expectations can lead to dangerous addictions to plastic surgery and it is up to the surgeon to ensure that the patient has an achievable goal in mind before beginning the surgery.

Risks of Liposuction

Along with the typical risks that come with any surgical procedure, liposuction is a relatively low risk plastic surgery solution for many. Laser liposuction further decreases risks as since it is a more precision enhanced method of the procedure. Typical complications such as surgical and anesthesia risks, as well as some common liposuction side effects are greatly reduced or eliminated altogether. Potential undesired effects such as skin irregularities and other poor results are greatly minimized because laser liposuction removes fat at a slower pace. The procedure might take longer because it is a slower method but the recovery is usually quicker due to the smaller equipment and incisions required to perform the surgery.

Liposuction Risks

The risks of liposuction can be categorized into two groups. They are either surgical related or anesthesia related. Surgical risks include any potential problems that could occur during the surgery or as a result of the surgery. Traditional liposuction procedures are particularly known for causing a lot of bleeding and so much so that in some cases blood transfusions are in order. Excessive bleeding and bruising are not as bad as the risk of internal organ damage caused by the mechanical force used to break up fat cells. There is also the risk of infection to the incision area after the surgery.

Anesthesia related risks are usually the result of improper administration. The wrong dosage can be dangers if overdosed and scary if under dosed and the patient awakes in the middle of the process. There are also some risks of allergic reactions to particular solutions in the drug. Patients are advised to avoid any epinephrine-like drugs such as cold medications because the solution in anesthesia would cause the heart rate to elevate. An excess of this could lead to cardiac arrhythmia.

Laser Liposuction Risks

Since laser assisted liposuction eliminates the need for excessive force to break up fat cells and provides a more accurate way of targeting fat cells, the neighboring tissue in the area being treated is less prone to trauma and stress. The chance of internal organ damage is near zero except for the extremely rare event that the surgeon doesn’t know what they are doing. Bleeding is minimal with laser liposuction because damage to blood vessels is minimal and in the event that there is a bleed, the heat from the laser will cause small leaks to evaporate. The smaller incision also means less risk of an infection after the surgery.

Traditional liposuction is used to treat larger areas and for that reason requires general anesthesia meaning the patient is completely sedated during the surgery. The larger dosage increases the risk. Laser lipo patients only require local anesthesia which means a smaller dosage, just enough to numb the area, and the patient is awake during the procedure. In this way, if something feels uncomfortable or abnormal there is an open line of communication between patient and surgeon throughout the procedure. The lower dosage also means that if the patient happens to have an allergic reaction to the drug, it will be a much smaller reaction.

Liposuction Side Effects

The most common side effects of liposuction include skin irregularities, hematomas and seromas. Skin irregularities is a permanent problem and although unsightly, is not particularly dangerous. It occurs when too much fat is removed from one area causing lumps and grooves to appear in the skin. There is also a risk of necrosis from some liposuction techniques that treat fat too close to the skin. Necrosis is dead skin cells caused by damage to the blood vessels and other connective tissue that supply the skin cells. Hematomas and seromas are conditions that cause visible coloration of the skin due to the pooling of blood leaked from damaged blood vessels. Proper drainage of the incision area can prevent of minimize the chances of hematomas or seromas. These are temporary conditions that go away with time depending on the severity.

Laser Lipo Side Effects

Laser liposuction minimizes most of the side effects such as hematomas and seromas because there is much less bleeding caused to the area. There is a risk, however, of burning the skin with the laser if it is left in one area for too long. This is a very rare case where the surgeon doesn’t move the laser away soon enough. The chance of skin irregularities is almost zero since laser liposuction is a slow process of removing smaller amounts of fat at a time. In fact, some large procedures will use traditional methods to remove large amounts of fat but stop just shy of finishing the procedure so that the surgeon can change techniques and use laser liposuction to remove the remainder of the fat. This way, the laser is used to define and finalize the sculpting of the area being treated.