The Safest Most Effective Form of Liposuction

Tumescent Liposuction

Tumescent liposuction is considered by many cosmetic surgeons and patients to be the safest and most effective form of liposuction surgery. The use of larger amounts of local anesthetic not only reduces pain after surgery, but also reduces bleeding, swelling, skin irregularities and makes the entire procedure more successful.

The Tumescent Liposuction Procedure

The term "tumescent" means swollen and firm, which is how this technique prepares the fatty tissue for removal. A solution of lidocaine (a local anesthetic) is injected into the fatty area along with a solution to constrict the blood vessels (typically epinephrine). The lidocaine is absorbed by the fatty tissue and causes the tissues to become swollen and firm. A large area of fatty tissue can be numbed using this technique, allowing for significant removal of unwanted fat while the patient is under local anesthesia.

Anesthetic Injections

In the first step of tumescent liposuction, a large dose of liquid (composed primarily of lidocaine, a local anesthetic, and epinephrine, which helps to shrink blood vessels) is injected into the part of the body being treated. The added fluid forces the compartments of fat to swell and firm up, which lets the doctor extract the unwanted fat more smoothly and with minimal bleeding.

Tumescent Liposuction Benefits: Reduced Bruising, Swelling, and Pain

Tumescent liposuction can significantly reduce some of the unpleasant side effects of other techniques. Because the anesthetic solution temporarily reduces the size of the capillaries, it can significantly reduce blood loss during surgery and the pain, bruising, and swelling that occurs afterward. And because tumescent liposuction provides local anesthesia, patients can avoid the side effects of general anesthesia, such as vomiting, nausea, heart abnormalities, breathing complications, airway injury, significant blood loss and prolonged recovery time.

Tumescent liposuction provides several advantages over the original liposuction:

• SIGNIFICANT COST REDUCTION!
• Using local anesthesia instead of general anesthesia eliminates nausea and other general-anesthesia-related side effects.
• The recovery time is shorter.
• There is less blood and fluid loss.
• Use of antibacterial lidocaine may reduce the chance of infection.
• Intravenous fluid replacement is not necessary.
• The swelling or tumescence of the fatty deposits amplifies the targeted areas for liposuction, thus reducing the risk of a secondary procedure.
• The new cannula design with tumescent liposuction reduces bruising and swelling after surgery.
• Smaller incisions result in less scarring.

After tumescent liposuction, the area of the liposuction procedure may stay numb for 36 hours without further injection of lidocaine or other pain killers.