subject: Are Limited Surgical Liposuction Alternatives Effective? [print this page] Are Limited Surgical Liposuction Alternatives Effective?
There are several limited incision or minimally invasive liposuction alternatives on the market. Some patients have asked me if they are effective or not. The alternatives to surgical liposuction do work to remove fat, but generally, they may work for everyone. These alternatives will not result in as much fat loss as traditional liposuction.
One alternative to traditional liposuction involves using a laser. Generally, an incision still needs to be made, and a plastic catheter is placed underneath the skin into the area of fat. The laser is then activated, and will melt the fat. However, the fat still needs to be removed with traditional liposuction.
There is a different technique that uses cold temperatures to "freeze" the fat externally, and then your body absorbs the fat and excretes it. This method relies on clamping the fat, and then applying the cryo-device. The problem with this technique is that the clamp cannot actually clamp all areas, the skin and fat under the clamps may have a dimple after the device is applied, and not much fat can actually be removed.
Liposuction requires a small incision to access the skin, and then suction or ultrasound or both is needed to melt or remove the fat. This can remove the most amount of fat and give you the best contour possible, but it may require general anesthesia, more swelling, and a longer recovery time. However,traditional liposuction still remains the gold standard of body contouring and fat loss.
There are other technologies on the horizon. A new external ultrasound device is coming out that melts fat, and then your body excretes the dissolved fat. This technology has the advantage of no incisions, true fat loss, contour, and no down time. The problem with this technology is that it will still not remove as much fat as traditional liposuction. This device exists in Europe and Asia, but is not in the US, and is still awaiting FDA approval.
