Liposuction Before & Afters

This 42-year-old mother of two was interested in body contouring to remove some of the excess skin and fatty tissue from her abdomen, as well as to tighten up the muscles that loosened from childbirth. Additionally, she was interested in liposuction of the thighs, which she was able to combine with the tummy tuck for a more cost-effective option. The surgery for the abdominoplasty and liposuction of the thighs was 4-hours, and was done at an outpatient surgical center where she went home the same day. She was given a special binder for her abdomen and compression garments for her thighs to wear continuously postoperatively, unless she was taking a shower. The patient had drains and some stitches in that were removed after the first week. She came back at 2-weeks postop to check for any fluid collections, and then again at 6-weeks postop to evaluate her final results. She will continue to see improvement as swelling goes down and the tissue relaxes over the next 3- to 6-months. The patient used narcotic pain mediation for approximately 1.5 weeks before transitioning completely to over-the-counter pain medication, and, as she worked on her computer from home, was able to return to work within one week.

66-year-old healthy female was interested in tumescent liposuction of the abdomen to give her a more sculpted look, and to help her fit better into clothes. She also had significant medical concerns with upper back, neck, and shoulder pain, and elected to have a bilateral breast reduction at the same time. As with any patient who undergoes surgery, she required a preoperative history and physical to clear her for surgery. The 4-hour surgery was done in an outpatient surgical center and she went home without complications the same day. The patient was given a binder for her abdomen and her breasts to be worn continuously unless she was showering. She wore dressings under the binder for a few days postoperatively to collect any minor drainage that she may have had, and did not require any drains. Her postoperative course was uncomplicated and she followed-up at 1-week for suture removal and at 6-weeks to evaluate final results. Swelling will continue to decrease over the next 3- to 6-months, but after 6-weeks she was cleared to return to normal activities without restriction.

36-year-old male desired liposuction of his chest for gynecomastia-like breasts and chose to also have liposuction of the abdomen to give him a more sculpted look. He underwent tumescent liposuction in a 2-hour procedure in an outpatient surgical center and went home the same day. This patient was given a prescription for pain medication and a binder to wear continuously postoperatively. He stopped taking pain medications after the original day of surgery and was able to return to work the following day, taking just Ibuprofen for pain. Although this is not the typical duration of discomfort for most patients, as most people feel discomfort for approximately 1-week, this patient had a safe and short recovery period. He had follow up appointments at 1-week for suture removal and at 6-weeks to check on his final results. He should continue to show improvement as swelling decreases, over a period of 3- to 6-months.