Tumescent Anesthesia Micro-Liposuction

Tumescent Anesthesia

This technique is now considered the safest form of micro-liposuction because it allows the removal of large amounts of fat with virtually no blood loss. The tumescent technique has also proven to be less painful, minimizes post operative recovery time, and produces optimal cosmetic results. The tumescent technique uses large volumes of a dilute solution of lidocaine, a local anesthetic, in combination with epinephrine, which temporarily shrinks capillaries, the tiniest of blood vessels. The local anesthetic used for liposuction is so effective that patients no longer need intravenous (IV) sedation, narcotic analgesics, or general anesthesia. Of the numerous patients who previously had liposuction under general anesthesia and then had tumescent anesthesia Micro-liposuction, virtually every one of these patients has found the tumescent technique to be less painful, to provide better results and to result in more rapid healing and recovery.

	Abdominal Micro-Liposuction with SmartLipo	Abdominoplasty (“Tummy Tuck”)
Procedure	v     No general anesthesia v     Minimally invasive procedure performed under local anesthesia only v     Using adits and micro-cannulas (size of a thermometer or less) large amounts of fat are debulked v     Area is then smoothed over with the SmartLipo laser	v     Uses general anesthesia or IV sedation v     Invasive surgery requiring stitches, drains v     Months of wearing a girdle
Complications & side effects	v     No risk of general anesthesia v     Bruising and soreness v     Pain is about 3-4 out of 10; very easily controlled with medication v     Minimal to no blood loss. v     Extremely low infection rate v     No scars or freckle scar only	v     Risk of anesthesia v     Potentially severe complications requiring hospitalization v     Potentially moderate blood loss requiring blood transfusion v     Moderate to severe pain requiring prescription pain medication v     Potentially visible scars
Recovery	v     Can return to work in 24 hours v     Exercise within the first week	v     Requires weeks off work v     Months before normal exercise is resumed
Results	v     Dramatic improvement with no cosmetically unsatisfactory scars v     Skin is tightened by the thermal effects of the laser	v     Dramatic improvement but with potentially visible scars

  

Virtually No Blood Loss

As a result of the widespread capillary constriction caused by the epinephrine in the anesthetic solution, there is minimal bleeding during and after surgery. Add to this the cauterizing effects of the SmartLipo laser and this becomes a major improvement in the liposuction technique compared to older methods that simply used general or regional anesthesia.

A recently completed study of large volume liposuction of 112 patients, each of whom had between 1,500 and 3,400 ml (1.5 quarts to almost 1 gallon) of fat removed using the Tumescent Technique and none required a blood transfusion. In fact, the average patient lost approximately 15 ml (three teaspoons) of blood. The Tumescent Technique is so effective at minimizing blood loss that the majority of patients with large volume liposuction lose less blood during the surgery than they do at the time of their routine pre-operative blood studies.

Decreased Risks of Infection with the Tumescent Technique

Infections are extremely rare whether or not the technique is that of general anesthesia or local anesthesia. Although there have been reports in the medical literature of patients who have had serious infections following liposuction surgery, to the best of my knowledge, there has never been any patients who have had an infection following Micro-liposuction totally by local anesthesia using the Tumescent Technique. Lidocaine, the local anesthetic that is used for the Tumescent Technique, kills bacteria.  So the Micro-liposuctioned treated areas receive the local anesthetic that kills bacteria and infection is extremely rare!

Micro-Liposuction

Using extremely thin micro-cannulas (about the thickness of straw or thermometer), we debulk the larger globules of fat from the areas of concern.  These micro-cannulas are inserted through tiny holes no bigger than a grain of rice; these tiny holes are so small they do not even require any stitches. The micro-cannulas require a minimal amount of force in order to advance them into the fatty tissue so this surgery is much more gentle. This allows the doctor to control the direction and position of the cannula with much more accuracy. The ultimate result is a greatly reduced risk of inadvertently approaching too close to the undersurface of the skin and unintentionally causing irregularities.

SmartLipo

Afterwards the SmartLipo laser fiber is inserted through the same holes to completely melt the remaining top layers of fat closest to the skin. This really smooths out the area.  Most importantly the heat from the laser cauterizes blood vessels so you have less bruising and healing time and the skin is tightened! The end results are incredible!

Spider Vein and Varicose Vein Therapy Los Angeles, Liposuction Los Angeles - www.medrehab.com