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Liposuction Surgery in Indianapolis by Dr Barry Eppley
One of the most frequent questions that I get asked by any patient considering liposuction is…..do the results last? That is a great question which, quite frankly, defies one simple answer. It is a very important question for any patient considering any type of cosmetic procedure because it addresses the issue of …value. What am I getting for what I am paying? If the procedure is easy to do, like Botox for example, then its relatively short durations (4 months or so) is well tolerated. But when it comes to actual invasive surgery like liposuction, where there is pain and recovery, the long-term benefits are a lot more important.
The basic answer to the duration of liposuction is…..if your weight is stable, then the results will be fairly stable. I certainly think that this is generally true but that answer are also influenced by what body area was treated and the sex of the patient. Not all fat is the same throughout the body. For example, stomach fat is a preferential depot site for storage of unused fat. Conversely, for example, the inner knee is not a depot site. It’s size generally does not go up or down based on how your weight fluctuates. Whether an area is depot site is different in men vs. women. The buttocks and thighs, for example, is much more of a depot site for women but is not for men at all. (how many heavy men with large stomachs have a small butt….very common!) So these factors must be considered as well. Meaning, greater ‘permanency’ will occur from liposuction in areas that are not depot sites. Depot sites are more likely to regain weight than non-depot sites.
A liposuction study that I read recently looked at two-year outcomes from liposuction surgery. The results were disappointing but not surprising to me. Nearly half of the patients treated had gained weight in the liposuction-treated areas, some bigger than they were before. (the good news is that half still had good results at two years!) This is a condemnation to the benefits of liposuction. It merely indicates, as I tell all potential patients, that liposuction is an adjunct to your body contouring efforts, not the sole solution. The long-term results are often only as good as the continued effort that you make through proper nutrition and exercise. Liposuction surgery is part of your overall body improvement program.
Dr Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
http://www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis

Pectoral Etching and Liposculpture in Indianapolis by Dr Barry Eppley

Contouring of the chest region by pectoral etching helps provide better definition to the pectoral muscles and the shape of the chest wall. Borrowing the concept from abdominal etching, in which the use of linear liposuction is used to define muscular edges and definitions, a similar technique can be applied to the chest with equally good results.

By selective removal of fat (liposculpture) from the side and lower borders of the pectoralis major muscle, the muscular appearance of the chest wall can be improved. This virilizes the chest contour while creating few visible scars. By sculpting the borders, and leaving fat over the main body of the muscle, the pectoral muscle bulk appears greater. This pectoral etching technique provides better shaping than simple gross fat removal in an even unsculpted manner across the chest wall.

Pectoral etching adds visible and palpable pectoral inscriptions to the chest wall. In a recent study published in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in December 2007, Dr. Ruiz-Razura and colleagues report treating over 200 patients over the past three years.with only a few minor complications. (small hematoma, irregular contour, too conservative of a result) Their experience has been that the results have been maintained, even in the face of weight gain and skin loosening with age. When pectoral etching is combined with abdominal etching, a more muscular-appearing torso is achieved. The procedure is becoming very popular in non-athletic males whose physique may not get sculpted even with regular strength training.

Dr Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
http://www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis

Liposuction vs LipoDissolve – Dr Eppley’s from Indianapolis Comments on the Importance of Patient Selection

The treatment of undesired fat today can be done by either traditional liposuction or the newer fat injection technique known as lipoDissolve. The frequent question then for many patients is….which is best for me? The answer to that question lies in the understanding that liposuction and lipodissolve are different……in how they work, in how well they work, and the time course in which they work. As a result, selecting liposuction vs lipodissolve for each patient is critical if good results are to be achieved.

As a general rule, lipodissolve is good for small fat deposits (usually the size of your hand or a coke can) such as in the neck, back of the arms, side of the waists (flank), small saddlebags, or the inside of the knee. Fat collections this small are generally not worth making a trip to the operating room to treat nor the higher costs to do so, unless you are having other procedures done as well. In this case, a series of three or four lipodissolve sessions, and the swelling that occurs after, is usually worth it. For larger fat collections, or when more than one or two areas of the body are involved, liposuction surgery is far better. Yes the costs are higher and there is an immediate recovery phase after surgery, but so much more fat can be removed that the effort is well worth it.

In short, Lipodissolve is not a substitute or replacement for Liposuction. In select small fat deposits, it may give results close to liposuction. It provides an alternative treatment to liposuction in medium-sized fat deposits that are limited to one area if one is willing to accept less of a result than that achieved by liposuction. The critical issue in these cases is the issue of value….are you getting a good return on your investment. That is best decided by a thorough discussion with your plastic surgeon to weigh out the advantages and disadvantages of each approach.

Liposdissolve has one other use that is usually better than liposuction….in the treatment of post-liposuction irregularities. “Spot’ reductions can be done by precise placement of lipodissolve injections. This can avoid the costs of another trip to the operating room for a minor touch-up.

Dr Barry Eppley
http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
http://www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis

Six-pack Surgery

The ultimate abdominal definition is the visible outline of the underlying abdominal muscles. Known as the six-pack look, it is actually caused by the enlargement of the rectus muscles, the lack of fat between the skin and the muscles, and the outward appearance of the inscriptions of the rectus muscle (which actually creates the lines of the six-pack) It usually takes a great amount of exercise and dieting to create this sought after look. For some patients, it is just not possible to thin the fat out that much to reveal the inscriptions. For these patients, a surgical shortcut can give them this look.

Using liposuction techniques, the fat can be precisely removed along vertical and horizontal lines, mimicking the inscriptions. This liposculpture technique requires the use of small cannulaes to suck the fat out along these carefully placed lines. This creates troughs (etchings) underneath the skin so that the underside of the skin sticks directly to the muscle. Hence, the six-pack look is achieved. The key to a natural result with abdominal etching is proper patient selection (the patient should be thin, in athletic condition, and have made a good effort to achieve the look on their own) and careful placement of the etch lines so that they lie along natural lines. (the patient’s skin is marked with them sitting down and slightly bending over)

The one downside to the procedure is what may happen long-term. If the patient gains weight, fat will unnaturally bulge between the etched lines creating an unusual appearance. The procedure is not reversible or easily correctable by fat injections, so the patient must accept long-term responsibility for maintaining their physical condition and now allowing much abdominal weight gain.

Dr Barry Eppley
www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com
www.ologyspa.com
Clarian North Medical Center, Carmel, Indiana
Clarian West Medical Center, Avon, Indiana
Indianapolis