Lipo Patients Have No Regrets
Studies Show High Satisfaction Rates

According to a new study, liposuction is more popular than ever, and patient satisfaction with the procedure continues to be very high.

Key Findings
The study stated that at six months post-surgery:

• 85 percent of patients were "very" or "nearly very" satisfied with their results
• 12 percent were "neither satisfied nor dissatisfied"
• 3 percent were "not satisfied"
  

The study was conducted by the Wilmette-based AAAHC Institute for Quality Improvement, a not-for-profit subsidiary of the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care.

No Hospital Stay Required
Liposuction continues to be performed most commonly in outpatient surgical facilities. In the new study, 76 percent of the procedures under review were completed in ambulatory settings.

Midsection the Most Common Area
of Concern Other findings from the study:

The midsection is still the body area most patients try to improve with liposuction treatment in women as well as men. Body areas receiving liposuction most frequently in 2005 were

• the abdomen (61 percent of cases)
• the hips (35 percent)
• other (4 percent)

These figures take into account the fact that some patients opt for liposuction on multiple areas of the body during a single session. Only 24 percent of patients received liposuction on just one body area during a session.

• 24 percent received liposuction on two body areas
• 24 percent on three body areas
• 16 percent on four body areas
• 4 percent on five body areas
• 4 percent on six body areas
• 2 percent on seven body areas
• Less than 1 percent on eight body areas.

Length of Surgery Varies Too
Mirroring the wide range in the number of body parts treated, physicians reported a wide variety of procedure times, from about 30 minutes to more than three hours. The average length of surgery was 87 minutes.

In nearly 95 percent of cases, less than 4,500 ml of fat (or about nine pounds) was extracted.

A Proven Winner
If you're suffering from localized fat deposits that ruin an otherwise shapely body, by all means come in for a consultation. Liposuction is a proven winner. It's made life more enjoyable for hundreds of thousands of patients the world over.

I use liposuction as an adjunct in a good portion of my surgeries, to give my patients the benefit of optimum contouring and smooth results. Even in post-bariatric patients who have lost an inordinate amount of weight, certain areas, like the thighs, will benefit from liposuction.

I have continued to use ultrasonic liposuction(UAL) as well as power assisted liposuction in selected cases where the fat is more fibrous and difficult to remove, such as in men's love handles and backs.

I have tried external ultrasonic liposuction, which has been available for several years, but have found it results in very marginal improvement.

www.surgery-plastic.com