Liposuction Sydney

YOUR INITIAL CONSULTATION WITH DR EDDY DONA

If you’re interested in Liposuction, the first step is an Initial Consultation with Dr Dona. During this time, you can discuss your concerns and objectives and ask questions. Dr Dona will carefully examine your body, evaluating the factors required for your best surgical treatment plan. At the end of the consultation, if you are deemed suitable to have Liposuction, Dr Dona and his team will give you the total price for your proposed procedure.

WHO IS THE IDEAL CANDIDATE FOR LIPOSUCTION?

The ideal candidate for Liposuction is someone who has not succeeded in losing stubborn areas of fat through diet and exercise. They should have good mental and physical health, have realistic expectations and consistently adhere to a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and a well-balanced diet.

Other factors, such as skin quality, also determine eligibility for liposuction surgery. Typically, the skin should be thick, have good tone and have no stretch marks. These qualities are essential as they help minimise the chance of developing skin irregularity and dimpling after your surgery.

AREAS TREATED WITH LIPOSUCTION

Liposuction can be performed on almost any part of the body with excess fatty tissue. However, some areas are more suitable than others, such as:

• Back of arms
• Outer thighs
• Lower abdominals
• Flanks (Sides of the waist)

LIPOSUCTION VS BODY CONTOURING SURGERY (EXCESS SKIN REMOVAL)

While Liposuction and Body Contouring Surgery sound similar, as they both help to contour the body, they are very different procedures. Liposuction sucks away stubborn excess fatty tissue from parts of the body. Alternatively, Body Contouring Surgery involves cutting away excess skin after significant weight loss(it may also include Liposuction to improve body form). Besides creating tiny nicks to insert the cannula, Liposuction leaves no sizable scars, while Body Contouring Surgery leaves scars of various lengths, depending on the procedure.

CAN LIPOSUCTION BE COMBINED WITH OTHER SURGICAL PROCEDURES?

Liposuction can be combined with other surgical procedures if required. For example, if you have breast surgery but also want to remove stubborn fatty tissue from the top of your arms or outer thighs, Liposuction can be incorporated into your surgery.

Liposuction can also be incorporated into a specific procedure, such as a Tummy Tuck, to help contour the area. The procedure is also performed to remove fat and transfer it to another area of the body, such as the buttocks or breasts.

IS LIPOSUCTION PERMANENT?

The results from Liposuction can be long-lasting, provided you maintain a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and a well-balanced diet. Once your fat cells have been removed, they have gone for good. However, if you do not keep a healthy lifestyle, you risk enlarging other fat cells throughout your body.

RECOVERY AFTER LIPOSUCTION

Your recovery process will depend on the area where the Liposuction was performed. During your Initial Consultation, Dr Dona will provide information on your specific recovery process.

After any Liposuction procedure, you can expect to experience some pain, swelling and bruising around the treated area. Immediately after surgery, you must wear a compression garment for approximately six weeks. A compression garment will assist in reducing the swelling and fluid accumulation in the treated area.

You may experience some leakage of bloodstained fluids at the incision site for the first couple of days.

There will be minor incision marks on your body, no more than 5 mm wide. These incisions are made to fit the cannula under your skin to suck away the excess fatty tissue. The scars soon become small dots that will fade over the next six to 12 months and will be barely noticeable. However, some people, particularly those prone to keloid scarring, will experience darker, more noticeable scarring.

POTENTIAL COMPLICATIONS OF LIPOSUCTION SURGERY

For more information on general potential complications, please visit our page here.

There is a risk of complications with all surgical procedures requiring anaesthesia. Consequently, no surgery should be considered ‘minor’. Chances of the following potential problems arising are minimal; however, you must be aware of them:

Anaesthetic issues – which can affect the heart, lungs or cause strokes

Allergic reactions – these can be very mild to life-threatening.

Clots

• Superficial vein clots – are a complication of the cannula or drip placed in your vein.
• Deep vein clots – these can potentially spread to the lungs and be life-threatening. We do several things during and after surgery while you’re in hospital to minimise the risk of developing deep vein clots.

Wound problems – such as infection and breakdown

Bleeding – early or late

Death – while the chances of this are exceedingly rare, any of the previous issues can result in this devastating complication.

All these potential problems are standard for any operation, although some operations and some patients have an increased risk of developing them.

Other specific potential complications may include:

Asymmetry – Differences between the right and left sides or unevenness of the skin.

Swelling – Swelling after surgery is normal. However, the swelling may take several months to resolve in some cases.

Loss of sensation – You may experience a loss of sensation in the areas that have been treated, and whilst some of this may return, oftentimes it will be permanent.

Dimpling, skin irregularity, lumpiness

Damage to deeper structures – including lungs and abdominal organs.

Chest problems – pneumothorax; pneumonia; fat embolus

Damage to deeper nerves and muscles

Scars – May appear to be worse during the first six months of healing. Unfortunately, hypertrophic or even keloid scar formation can occur.

Circulation – Circulation may be poor in some areas of the skin in the surgical area. This may lead to a loss of skin and a wound that needs to be dressed until it heals. These wounds may require further surgery until they are fully healed.

Skin discolouration

Seromas – A seroma is where fluid builds up under the wound. If this occurs, it may need to be drained with a needle.

Further surgery – Fine Tuning – It’s not uncommon for any contouring surgery patient to require further surgery to “fine tune” the results.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

WHEN CAN I SEE THE RESULTS OF MY LIPOSUCTION?

It may take up to three months to see the results of your Liposuction surgery; however, this depends on the area of your surgery.

WHEN CAN I RESUME NORMAL ACTIVITIES?

You’ll be encouraged to gently walk around the house the next day after your procedure.

You can resume all normal activities six weeks after your procedure. It’s essential that you don’t increase your heart rate above 100 beats per minute during the first three weeks after your surgery.

IS LIPOSUCTION GOOD FOR WEIGHT LOSS?

Liposuction should never be considered a weight loss tool and won’t provide the health benefits of regular exercise and a healthy diet. Instead, the individual should have lost most excess weight and require Liposuction only to remove stubborn pockets of fat that don’t respond to diet and exercise.

IS LIPOSUCTION PAINFUL?

After your procedure, you will experience some pain. However, we’ll provide you with medication to help you feel more comfortable. You’ll also be given a compression garment to wear for about six weeks, which helps with healing and makes you feel more comfortable.

CAN I HAVE LIPOSUCTION INSTEAD OF A TUMMY TUCK?

Liposuction can remove stubborn pockets of fat, but cannot address issues with sagging skin tissue or muscle separation. Therefore, if you have localised areas of stubborn fat on your tummy, are free from excessive stretch marks and have thick skin with good skin tone, then Liposuction may be a good option. However, if you have sagging skin and tissues with many stretch marks or muscle separation (diastasis recti) after pregnancy, you may require a Tummy Tuck.