Posts Tagged ‘smartlipo’
Monday, January 9th, 2012
Q: Dr. Eppley, I am 36 yrs old , weigh 132 lbs and work out three to four times a week. Despite these good numbers, I have big saddlebags that definitely don’t fit the rest of my body. I have had them my entire life ever since I was a teen. They make my bottom half completely mismatched to my small and toned upper half. I have read that after liposuction fat can reappear and in different places. I would not want to ruin my upper half at the expense of improvement in my lower half. Is this something that I should be concerned with?
A: Liposuction of your saddlebags will provide great improvement and patients like yourself are exactly what liposuction was designed for and is best at…spot fat removal. There are many fallacies and inaccuracies about what happens to fat after liposuction. When it comes to potential future weight gain, the saddlebags unlike the stomach and waistline is not an area that fat will reaccumulate. It is not a metabolic depository site for extra calories. But other body areas are and it is certainly possible that fat can appear in other body areas with weight gain. The concept that you are really referring to is known as ‘fat equilibrium’, the belief that everyone has a certain amount of fat that they are genetically predisposed to have. And by removing one area of fat, the body in an effort to maintain a fat balance will just have it accumulate elsewhere. This fat concept, while often talked about as if fact, has never been scientifically proven. A recent small study in plastic surgery did show that abdominal and thigh liposuction patients one year after surgery did have some measurable increase in thickness in the arms and upper back. But it was not something that the patients noticed. I would not be concerned that your saddlebag liposuction by Smartlipo will change your upper body shape to any noticeable degree if at all.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, saddle bag liposuction, smartlipo
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Saturday, November 12th, 2011
Q: Dr. Eppley, I have a fatty area on my very upper inner thighs that is always rubbing even though the rest of my legs are fairly muscular. I also have an area of fat between my breasts and armpits that I cannot stand. I exercise daily and these problem areas are never resolved. Do you think Lipodissolve would be beneficial? Thank you.
A: Thank you for your inquiry. In answer to your question, I do not think that Lipodissolve would be the way to go for all of those fatty areas. Lipodissolve requires a series of injections, which cause swelling and discsomfort for a week afterwards. It would take three or four injection sessions spaced four to six weeks apart to see results. With multiple fat areas you would find that process slow and mildly unpleasant, in essence an inefficient fat reduction method whose results are uncertain. While it is a non-surgical treatment, it just won’t work well for what you want to achieve. It would be far better, achieving more efficient and effective fat reduction, to undergo a one hour Smartlipo procedure under anesthesia. This may be exactly what you want to avoid but you would also want whatever treatment is chosen to work as well. Interestingly, a one hour liposuction procedure will actually cost less and have a quicker recovery than a series of Lipodissolve injection sessions.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, lipodissolve, smartlipo
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Monday, August 8th, 2011
The stomach area is the number one region that almost all women, and some men, would like to improve. Many have discovered, however, that improving that body area is not as easy as one would like. Many people work hard at it but eventually ‘hit the wall’, get frustrated and may even quit their diet and exercise routinue with no more changes are seen. But the fault may not be your own. Loose stomach skin and fatty bulges at the waistline from pregnancy or significant weight loss are not amenable to internal calorie or fat burning. This brings some to the conclusion that the only way to a more shapely torso is a surgical one.
Everyone knows that a tummy tuck is the removal of skin and fat with muscle tightening to get a flatter stomach and better waistline. While it is almost always a very satisfying procedure, and many patients say afterwards they wish they had done it sooner, it is major surgery and is not just a weekend recovery. When considering a tummy tuck, be aware of the following considerations.
There are two basic types of tummy tucks. If your excess skin and fat is mostly located below the belly button, you may do just fine with a mini tummy tuck. Because the skin and fat removal is done below the belly button, there is a shorter incision that can be placed very low and the belly button is not moved. There is also a slightly shorter recovery with emphasis on the word ‘slightly’. If the loose skin and stretch marks are above the belly button, only a full tummy tuck will do. With that comes a longer scar, a bellybutton scar and a longer recovery.
I have seen recent treatment approaches, particularly online, that tout a ‘scar-free tummy tuck’. There is no such thing and this is just marketing spin to say they are offering stomach liposuction. That raises a question that many people would like to pursue…liposuction instead of a tummy tuck for their flabby and sagging stomachs. That has become a popular request, particularly since Smartlipo (laser liposuction) technology has become available. While it is true that Smartlipo does have some skin tightening ability, it is quantitatively different than what many people need. Smartlipo tightens skin as measured in millimeters, most people need stomach skin tightening as measured in centimeters. With this understanding, it is easy to see that liposuction is not a substitute for a tummy tuck.
Liposuction, however, is very often a part of a tummy tuck. But it isn’t necessarily used to make the tummy part looking better. It is used to shape the areas outside of where the effects of the tummy tuck occur…the outer waistline and back. (i.e. muffin tops) A tummy tuck alone is a 180 degree or frontal torso change. By adding waistline and back contouring with liposuction, the results becomes more of a 270 degree torso change.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, smartlipo, tummy tuck
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Monday, July 18th, 2011
When a product or manufacturer calls itself ‘smart’, there should be a good reason. Such is the case with the plastic surgery method known as Smartlipo. Highly touted as a better and more efficient method of liposuction, its name clearly suggests that it is better than traditional or ‘dumb’ liposuction. Grandiose claims are made all over the internet, most of which by doctors who use this liposuction technique. The manufacturer of the liposuction device, Cynosure, focuses on the established science behind it.
Smartlipo is a laser technique for melting fat to make it easier to extract. By first heating up the fat to a specific temperature, like oil in a cooking pan, it is turned from a solid into a liquid. This is done by using a laser probe that is passed through the fat area until the right temperature is reached. Then a liposuction cannula is used to remove by vacuum the oily liquid and any other fatty chunks in the area.
But what makes this liposuction so smart and why is it better? First, what it isn’t. Because a laser is involved, many potential patients think it is not invasive surgery. It is just as invasive as traditional liposuction which means there will be a recovery. This is not some magical approach that works from outside the body. Just because it is a laser, it doesn’t really zap the fat like a video game. It is about raising the temperature of the fatty zone until the fat begins to melt. The laser is just a way to heat the fat like the burner on the stove.
What makes Smartlipo better is that it creates a global melting effect which removes more fat than suction alone. Because of the heat damage, more fat is lost later than just what comes out at the time of surgery. Fat continues to die days to weeks later, thus the full effect of the fat removed is not really seen for months even though the early results are apparent within weeks after the procedure. This heating effect also accounts for its skin tightening capability. Such an effect, however, is almost always overstated and over expected. Do not expect Smartlipo to replace what a tummy tuck or armlift can do.
While many doctors tout Smartlipo as being done under local anesthesia with little recovery, this is often not so. Because there is considerable heat generated during the procedure, it is not hard to see that local anesthesia is often not enough for a comfortable operative experience. One can only remove enough fat if the patient is comfortable and will allow it. It is not a test to see who is the toughest. This is why I recommend a general anesthetic. The best result in the shortest period of time can be done when the maximal amount of fat can be comfortably removed.
Recovery from Smartlipo is not much different than traditional liposuction. While the amount of fat removed can be better, this does not mean there is less recovery. The laser does result in less pain and bruising but the amount of swelling is about the same, requiring months to eventually see the final body contouring effect.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, laser liposuction, smartlipo
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Wednesday, June 1st, 2011
Q: I am interested in tumescent liposuction. I’m in the Army stationed overseas. I have a permanently damaged leg from being in Afghanistan and I’ve gained a lot of weight due to my workout limitations. I’ve lost 20 pounds but can’t seem to lose anymore. I will be visiting family in your area this year and I am researching doctors that may help me shed some fat in the abdomen area.
A: Sometimes people do need some help surgically with their weight issue. Liposuction can be beneficial when one has ‘hit the wall’ in their weight loss despite their best efforts, when they need a jumpstart to get them motivated to make or continue with their lifestyle changes, and to help those that simply can not work out due to physical limitations. While liposuction is not the long-term solution to troublesome body areas with excess fat, it can be a successful part of one’s weight loss efforts if properly understood.
When it comes to liposuction, there is nothing special or new about using the tumescent concept. Perhaps 20 years ago, tumescent liposuction was an advanced technique. But today, every liposuction method uses tumescence or the infiltration of fluid prior to the actual extraction of fat. This fluid is essential, not only for numbing the tissues, but to help control bleeding from the trauma to the tissues. Whether it be Smartlipo (laser liposuction), Vaser, or ultrasound methods, tumescent fluid infiltration is a part of all of them.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, smartlipo, tumescent liposuction
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Tuesday, May 24th, 2011
Liposuction remains the most rapid way to lose unwanted fat albeit a surgical one. While it is ideally for those people who have made every effort to lose fat areas on their own through diet and exercise, not every fat area responds the same. Some fat areas are more difficult to lose than others and certain fat areas can not be reduced at all except in the face of extreme weight loss. It is these non-metabolically responsive fat areas that justify liposuction intervention.
One of the very good questions any prospective patient should ask about liposuction is will my fat return? Will I keep this fat off years from now or is this just a short-term fix? Economically does this procedure have a good ROI? (return on investment) There are many urban myths about whether fat can or can not return after liposuction. Where some of these purported claims come from I do not know, but science and a lot of patient experience provides the following insights.
Fat will not return after liposuction. This is patently false and perhaps was started and propogated by what one would hope will happen. The reality is fat can return. The results from liposuction are closely aligned with your weight. If your weight stays the same years from now then so should the result. Fat after liposuction can return just as easily as after weight loss…and then weight gain. Some body areas are more resistant to fat return than others (knees or arms vs stomach and waistline), but no body area or fat cell is completely immune to the allure of extra calories.
If fat comes back after liposuction it will go to other body areas. This is sort of true but not to the extent of what was originally removed. A recent published study showed that fat suctioned from the stomach and thighs from women had some slight increase in measurements in the arms and upper back a year after surgery. But not to the extent that the women noticed or was bothered by it…or that they regretted having the procedure. If fat returns it must go somewhere and it is logical that it may have more trouble going back to a treated area that is now embedded with scar tissue.
Fat cells are permanently destroyed by liposuction. This is not true. Those fat cells that have been suctioned out are permanently removed. But there are always lots of fat cells left behind as you can not or would you want to remove them all. (otherwise your skin would be stuck down to your muscles and wouldn’t move) While the fat cells that are left behind may be damaged, they have a great ability to heal and regrow. Since it has been discovered that fat sites have the highest amounts of stem cells in the body, and stem cells can be easily stimulated to grow and transform into fat cells, liposuctioned fat sites are not immune to recur. This may be different with the current use of Smartlipo (laser liposuction) where the heat from the laser energy can cause more fat and stem cell damage.
Despite the effectiveness of liposuction to reduce unwanted fat, the long-term success of the procedure is highly dependent on the lifestyle habits on whom it is performed.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, fat return after liposuction, indianapolis, smartlipo
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Thursday, December 2nd, 2010
Q: I have been unhappy with my lower abdomen area so I had Smartlipo done three years ago. So I went and asked another plastic surgeon in my area what he could do and he said either try Thermage to tighten the skin. Then if I was still unhappy I could go for a revision and do a fat transfer. I went ahead and did the Thermage and now I’m waiting o see whart the results will be. But I don’t think that it is going to even out the areas. It seems that when Smartlipo was done some fat was left behind and formed these bump and lumps. Since I’m almost 40 years old I thought the Thermage would help. I wasn’t over weight I was just trying to get a little help in sculpting since I routinely workout. And it is very apparent that the surgeon overdid it. And since then I’ve been trying to get used to seeing myself like this. But haven’t really gave up hope yet. What are your suggestions?
A: Abdominal irregularities after liposuction is unfortunately not rare. They appear as lumps and bump as you have described. While the concept of non-surgical skin tightening sounds theoretically appealing, I would not be optimistic that would be a solution to the problem. The problem is differential thickness of the underlying subcutaneous fat layer.
When considering treatment of theses lumps and bumps, you must first decide whether they are problems of fat excess or fat deficiencies. In other words, are these lumps and bumps high spots or is the area between them low spots. That decision is critical because the treatment is radically different. If the lumps and bumps are areas of fat excess, they can be treated by Lipodissolve or dilute steroid injections to cause fat atrophy. Depending upon their topography, they may also benefit by spot liposuction reduction. If the problem is that the lumps and bumps are normal and the areas between them are deficient, then fat injection grafting is the treatment of choice.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis Indiana
Tags: abdominal irregularities after liposuction, dr barry eppley, indianapolis, liposuction, plastic surgery, smartlipo
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Wednesday, December 1st, 2010
Q: I would like to know the differences between slim lipo and smart lipo. I have read its more the Doc, than the process. I would like to get cost estimates, and a list of good Docs near my location. Thank you.
A: You have asked three very good questions about liposuction of which all three are understandably misunderstood.
The names, Smartlipo and SlimLipo, are brand names from different manufacturers of laser liposuction equipment. Smartlipo was the original company that introduced a laser liposuction device to the market back in the mid-2000s. Since then they have undergone numerous technologic developments with better and more powerful laser liposuction machines. Along the way numerous manufacturing competitors have arisen with their own branded names of which SlimLipo is one but there at least a half dozen others. Both companies and their docs can argue all day about which one is better but, in the end, it really comes down to the skill and experience of who is driving them so to speak…as you have already pointed out.
Cost estimates in liposuction can not really be accurately done without knowing the specifics areas that one wants to treat. It is all about the time and effort that it takes to do the procedure. There is a big difference in cost, for example, from a simple neck liposuction which takes 30 minutes to total abdomen, flank and thigh treatments which could take around 2 to 2 1/2 hours to surgically complete. One would have to be specific as to the areas involved to even get a cost estimate without being evaluated in the office.
Lastly, the concept of what constitutes a ‘good Doc’ is a matter of perspective. There are no lists of good or bad docs anywhere. What you want to find is the right doctor for you. That requires doing your research online of various websites and eventually getting yourself in front of some actual doctors and gathering more information.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, liposuction, plastic surgery, smartlipo
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Sunday, November 14th, 2010
Q:Hello, I am 58 years old and I had a full hysterectomy in May and then another surgery a few weeks later when all my stitches ripped out and I totally opened up. My son is in Afganistan (fourth time) as well as my daughter in law. I also served in the Navy years ago. Anyway, as I cannot afford the smart lipo on my abdomen (upper and lower) presently, I was wondering how much of a discount the patriot plan saves on this procedure and how long will this promotion go on? Also, does the skin actually tighten up and not sag? This email is just a question about the future possibilities and any information you can give me would be appreciated. I really want to get rid of my stomach and maybe next year I would be able to afford it. Thanks for your time – I appreciate it.
A: Thank you for your inquiry. The general discount in the Patriot program averages around 25% off the full procedure and the program continues without any deadline. What type of procedure is best for your stomach area, however, remains unclear based on your description. My concern is that the description of your problem sounds more like some form of a tummy tuck than that of Smartlipo. If there is any substantial skin excess, then no form of stomach liposuction is the way to go. One of the great misconceptions about Smartlipo is that it is a great skin tightening method. It is not and is highly overpromoted that way. While it does have some skin tightening ability, it will tighten inches of loose abdominal skin which many people that come in for it have. Between a hysterectomy and its after surgery problem, multiple pregnancies and your age, I suspect that the skin issue is beyond what Smartlipo can improve. A tummy tuck in some form is likely more appropriate for your problem.
Feel free to send me a picture of your stomach and I can answer that question very quickly.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis Indiana
Tags: dr barry eppley, indianapolis, plastic surgery, smartlipo, tummy tuck
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Monday, October 25th, 2010
Q: Hi. I know I might be young to ask, age 19, but I was wondering what you called a plastic surgery that takes care of love handles. But I am not talking about the hip handles. I have some pretty good handles right under my breasts that wrap to my back. I believe it is some loose skin as I have managed to loose 25 pounds this past year. I am just wondering what you would call that specific body part and maybe an average of how much it would cost to fix it. Thanking you in advance for replying. From a discouraged yound girl.
A: The important question is whether the rolls underneath your breast that extend into your back are skin, fat or a combination of both. With weight loss, most loose skin is going to develop and be seen lower due to gravity. That being said, I would have no doubt that it is a combination of loose skin and fat. Whether one is more predominant over the other would require an actual physical examination to make that distinction. But given your young age, I would recommend a liposuction procedure for fat reduction first and see how the skin adapts. The fat in the upper abdomen and the back is more fibrous in nature than lower abdominal fat and a liposuction technique, such as Smartlipo, will be more effective than traditional liposuction. There are methods of skin and fat removal by excision in the upper abdomen, which do leave lower breast fold scars, but they are usually reserved for more extreme cases of weight loss where the sagging skin is the predominant problem.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tags: back liposuction, dr barry eppley, indianapolis, plastic surgery, smartlipo, upper abdominal liposuction
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