Liposculpture,
1. Broadining The Scope Of Liposculpture
Liposculpture has changed enormously over the years to become a procedure with minimal recovery and predictable results. Sydney cosmetic surgeon, DR ANOOP RASTOGI, explains to Jodi Thiessen. Advances in liposculpture have allowed treatment to commonly performed areas with better results, and have also made it possible to treat areas previously thought untreatable. Sydney cosmetic surgeon, Dr Anoop Rastogi, specialises in liposculpture and trained under Giorgio Fischer in Rome who first developed the technique of liposculpture in the 70s. Since that time there have been amazing advances in the instruments and techniques that Dr Rastogi uses, which have helped increase the scope of liposculpture. Improving Skin Tone with Superficial Undermining Techniques Traditional methods of performing liposculpture leave a thick layer of fat beneath the skin to cover up irregularities produced by the liposculpture further down. Dr Rastogi explained: "The disadvantage of this is that it greatly retards the skins ability to shrink and may leave it loose and floppy." Consequently liposculpture has been limited to the young with good skin tone and to people with only small fat deposits." The skin has an enormous ability to contract, but to do so it must be released from its underlying fat," said Dr Rastogi. With improvements in surgical technique, and with the use of instruments such as microcannulas, some doctors have developed sufficient skill to produce liposculptures smooth enough not to require the thick buffer zone. This has allowed the introduction of superficial undermining techniques, which release the skin and allow it to achieve its contraction potential. Superficial undermining techniques have broadened the scope of treatment to much larger liposculptures, and to patients up to their late fifties, Dr Rastogi said. It has also meant that now many women can be treated, who previously required a tummy tuck, with a simpler and safer liposculpture." The nourishing blood vessels and nerves that maintain skin integrity lie within the first 4mm of the skin. By judiciously performing superficial undermining to just below this level, we have been able to achieve very exciting results , "said Dr Rastogi. What Can Liposculpture Treat? Commonly treated areas in women include the abdomen, hips, and thighs, which are predisposed to accumulating fat due to the effect of oestrogen. In men the common areas are the abdomen, love handles and chest. Dr. Rastogi explained: "With the instruments and techniques now available, surgeons with artistic skills are able to produce precise and refined liposculptures that can provide balance and proportion to the patientsfigure. But there is a much broader scope of are as that can now be treated, and many patients a rent aware of this." Ankles "Ankles are an area many women dont know can be treated but can produce a great difference. The ankles make an enormous difference to the shape of the leg, "said Dr Rastogi. "The overall perception of the leg being slim has a lot to do with how fine the ankles are. "Heavy ankles fall into two major categories, the first group are people who have an excess of fat on their ankles. This is purely genetic and has very little to do with the patients overall weight. These people get surprisingly good results from liposculpture. The second is a small group of people whose bones and tendons are very thick. For these patients liposculpture wont make a significant difference. There is also a small group people with medical problems that cause swelling of their ankles and they are not suitable for treatment. Knees People often see their legs as chunky and they dont know why. Their thighs arent big, their ankles arent big, but their legs look big. The problem is they have an excess of fatty tissue around the knee. Dr Rastogi explained: "Like the ankle, the knee has a great impact on the appearance of the whole leg. When you have slender knees, even if you have big thighs and calves, you have shapely, attractive legs. It is a relatively small amount of fat that needs to be taken to gain a good result. "Neck Both slender and larger people can have a problem with fatty deposits under their chin and neck. "This is very simply helped by liposculpture. A relatively small amount of fat is taken but it makes a huge difference," explained Dr Rastogi. Again, because the skin there is finer, the fat appears more prominent, but the skin retracts very well. However, there is a certain point where the age of the patient is such that it may need to be combined with a neck lift. A person in their 30s or 40s with a double chin can certainly be treated with liposculpture alone. Arms The arms are an area that many women are desperate to fix, yet most people are unaware can be treated. "There is a common misperception that the arm is flab and if the fat is removed the skin will hang and be even worse. This is simply not the case" said Dr Rastogi. "The skin of the arms is thin so when there is fat, it adds weight and makes the skin hang. When the excess fat is removed, the skin retracts, allowing the perception of slender, firm arms even in older women, unless the problem is excessive." The arms, like the face, have a strong influence on appearance of the figure, this is why even a slim patient, with a rounded face or fatty arms tends to look heavier. Also, when looking at the silhouette front on, the width of the body is governed by the arms, hips, and outer thighs. For both these reasons, liposculpture of the arms often tends to produce a greater than expected improvement to the figure. Breasts Reduction Liposuction assisted breast reduction is an ever increasing treatment method for large breasted woman. It has the enormous advantages of inconspicuous scarring and low risk profile, compared to standard breast reduction. It is particularly useful in young women who are very self conscious about scarring and who have a tighter skin envelope. The ability to breast feed is largely unaffected. Unfortunately, very large breasts are often not suitable for treatment. With technology advances and techniques such as superficial undermining, liposculpture has broadened its scope to not only include older people and people with larger fatty deposits, but it also allows the sculpting of areas previously thought of as untreatable.