Background: Liposuction is the most well known fat removal method and has been around now for over forty years. As the surgical techniques and equipment have evolved over this time, fat has been extracted from every conceivable location on the human body. Depending upon the body location and the amount of fat removed liposuction can serve as a volume reduction method or more of a sculpting method.
One of the most challenging areas on the whole body is that of the lower legs. Thick lower legs that have an indistinct shape defy exercise or any other therapy to improve their look. Liposuction is the only method to do so and relies on the premise that too much fat is why they look the way they do.
While excess fat is most certainly a major contributor to the thick lower leg, it is not the only tissue present. The large size of the calf muscles and even the bones are part of he make up of the leg. These tissues are not modifiable and ultimately serve as the limiting factor into how much the size and shape of the lower leg can be improved.
Case Study: This 34 year-old female desired lower leg reshaping. She had thick legs her whole life and would not wear shorts or skirts because of them. They were a lifelong source of embarrassment. While she did not have a thin body habitus she was not significantly overweight either.
Under general anesthesia small cannula liposuction was performed on the inner knees, the entire calfs and on both sides of the ankles. A total of 1,275cc of fat aspirate was obtained between both lower legs.
Her results show some modest improvement in the shape of her lower legs. They had a more evident knee and calf definition and were somewhat smaller. It took almost three months until all the swelling had completely gone way.
Reshaping of the lower leg by liposuction produces modest improvement. It is usually never dramatic and can not a big leg and make it a small leg. Its improvement comes by making the underlying shape of the muscle more evident.
Highlights:
1) Reshaping of the larger leg can only be done by liposuction from the knees down to the ankles.
2) The effects of liposuction on the lower leg are limited by the amount and location of the fat that can be removed from the subcutaneous layer.
3) Swelling from lower leg liposuction will take up to three months to completely resolve.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana