Liposuction remains one of the most popular of all plastic surgery procedures. If you count all the different body areas from which fat is removed , liposuction is the #1 plastic surgery procedure performed in the United States. While liposuction continues to evolve with newer methods of fat emulsification (e.g., ultrasonic, laser), the basic concepts of liposuction and what to expect after the procedure remain the same.
While liposuction does not use any significant incisions to be done (small cannulas are introduced through several minute incisions), what occurs under the skin is quite traumatic to the tissues. While it may not look like much from the outside, a lot has taken place underneath which will account for a host of symptoms which will be evident in the following weeks of recovery.
First and foremost, liposuction causes a fair amount of discomfort. No matter what method of liposuction is used, it is painful after. Certain body areas are more uncomfortable after than others, such as the abdomen, back, and flanks, but saying liposuction causes some ‘mild discomfort’ is certainly an understatement. You can’t cause that much tissue trauma without associated pain.
Liposuction, even with a small amount of fat removal, is associated with swelling and bruising. These can vary greatly between patients, but all will have both. Between the swelling from the procedure, and the fluid that is infused during the procedure, the swelling may not make the results evident for weeks. Remember….if you have bruising, you still have swelling. A great liposuction result will happen when you take off the garments for the first time to shower and you can already see a significant improvement even in the face of swelling. However, just because the treated areas may not look any different right after doesn’t mean good improvement won’t be there a month after surgery. Liposuction is a procedure which takes time to see the results. I never judge the success of any liposuction procedure for at least 6 weeks after surgery. The final elimination of swelling and the fine-tuning of body contours takes up to 3 months after surgery.
It is common to feel hard areas or knots under the skin of liposuctioned areas for several months. These area areas of blood, fluid, and scar that are typical. These areas will eventually soften and go away as fluid and blood are reabsorbed and scarred areas soften as healing progresses.
Expect numbness of the skin overlying any area treated by liposuction. The sweeping of the cannula under the skin cuts the tiny little nerves to the skin which makes it numb. Feeling will eventually return but it will take a month or two to do so. As the feeling comes back, you will experience some strange sensation in the skin such as burning, electrical shocks, and itching. This is a normal part of nerves recovering. It is annoying but it will go away.
Dr. Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana