Liposuction is a cosmetic procedure designed to suction away stubborn fat for a slimmer physique. It is important to emphasize, however, that liposuction is not a weight loss treatment. Instead, it is designed to help patients who are at or near their desired weight target “problem areas” that have been otherwise resistant to diet and exercise, such as the flanks, abdomen, arms, thighs, and jowls. Our Greensboro plastic surgeon—Mary Ann Contogiannis, MD—has years of experience helping patients achieve the leaner, more toned silhouette they desire using liposuction.
Who Is a Good Liposuction Candidate?
Ideal liposuction candidates are healthy adults who are at or near their desired weight. It is important to have reasonable expectations regarding what the procedure can accomplish and to acknowledge that liposuction will not produce significant weight loss results. For optimal results, patients should also have firm muscle tone and sufficient skin elasticity.
For those struggling with excess skin or loose musculature—both of which are common concerns after pregnancy or massive weight loss—liposuction may not be the ideal treatment option, since it is only capable of removing fat. After assessing your needs, Dr. Contogiannis may recommend an alternative procedure, such as a tummy tuck, which can more adequately address those concerns. In other cases, liposuction can be combined with other procedures—such as Endermologie® cellulite treatments—to maximize your aesthetic outcomes.
What Areas Can Liposuction Treat?
Liposuction can effectively target stubborn fat across various areas of the body, including:
- Abdomen and waist
- Hips and flanks
- Thighs (inner, outer, and anterior)
- Buttocks
- Upper arms
- Back (upper and lower)
- Chest (including male breast reduction)
- Neck and chin
- Knees
- Calves and ankles
Each of these areas can be treated to remove excess fat, enhance body contours, and achieve a slimmer, more sculpted appearance. Dr. Contogiannis always customizes treatment based on individual goals and body type for optimal results.
What Are the Benefits of Liposuction?
Liposuction can have many aesthetic benefits, and patients are usually delighted with the results of their procedure. Some of the more common benefits include:
- Dramatic improvement in self-confidence and self-image
- Improved, natural-looking shape and contour of the body
- Results that can be seen immediately and which continue to improve over time
- Results that can be long-lasting if you maintain a consistent, healthy weight
- Excessive underarm sweating and thigh chafing due to excess fat can be reduced or even eliminated
Does Liposuction Get Rid of Cellulite?
Liposuction is designed to remove localized deposits of excess fat from specific areas of the body, but it’s not considered an effective treatment for cellulite. Cellulite is a structural condition that occurs when fat cells push up against the skin while fibrous connective bands pull downward, creating the characteristic dimpling or “orange peel” appearance. While liposuction targets and removes fat cells beneath the skin, fat removal does not alter the fibrous connective tissue responsible for cellulite. In fact, cellulite can be present in individuals of all body types, including people who are naturally thin or physically fit. Hormones, genetics, skin thickness, and connective tissue structure all play a role in cellulite development, so smoothing the skin typically requires more comprehensive techniques than selective fat removal.
Fortunately, Dr. Contogiannis offers non-surgical cellulite treatment to smooth visible skin dimpling. With Endermologie cellulite reduction, our team can break down the connective tissue causing cellulite and restore a smoother texture in areas affected by bumpiness or dimpling. This convenient in-office treatment can be performed alone or combined with body sculpting procedures like liposuction to achieve more comprehensive results.
Liposuction vs. Tummy Tuck
Liposuction and tummy tuck surgery are often compared because both procedures address concerns in the abdominal area; however, they serve very different purposes and are designed for different patients’ needs. Liposuction focuses on removing localized pockets of stubborn fat to improve contour and definition. Surgery is minimally invasive, and fat removal is typically most successful for individuals who are near their ideal weight, have good skin elasticity, and are primarily bothered by excess fat rather than loose skin or muscle separation. Liposuction does not tighten skin or repair weakened abdominal muscles.
A tummy tuck is a more comprehensive surgical solution for patients with excess abdominal skin, weakened or separated muscles (diastasis recti), and a protruding or lax midsection. This procedure removes loose skin, tightens the underlying muscles, and often includes limited fat removal for smoother results. Tummy tucks are especially popular among patients after pregnancy or significant weight loss. While recovery is more involved than liposuction alone, the results are typically more dramatic and transformative. In some cases, liposuction and a tummy tuck are combined to address both the fat and skin, offering optimal abdominal rejuvenation. The right approach for you depends on anatomy, goals, and a thorough consultation with Dr. Contogiannis.
What Can I Expect From the Liposuction Procedure?
Liposuction is typically performed under general anesthesia. Dr. Contogiannis will insert a thin, hollow tube called a cannula into small incisions near the targeted area(s).
As the cannula moves through the tissue, it breaks up the fat cells and suctions them away. The remaining tissues can then be smoothed and sculpted to enhance the contours of the area.
It is important to note that liposuction is not intended to be a weight loss treatment or to serve as a substitute for proper diet and exercise. The amount of fat that can be safely removed through liposuction is limited. While it’s true your weight may go down a few pounds, the actual weight loss will not be significant.
What Is Recovery Like After Liposuction?
Dr. Contogiannis will give you specific post-operative instructions, and you should follow them closely in order to ensure that you heal as efficiently as possible. At the Renaissance Center for Plastic Surgery & Wellness, we want the best for our patients, and we will carefully track your results and recovery through follow-up visits.
On the day of surgery, Dr. Contogiannis will likely have you up and moving around very soon after your procedure. This is to help increase circulation, which in turn helps to support proper healing. Most patients are able to have any stitches removed within a week or two. There may be some soreness, swelling, and bruising, but these symptoms should dissipate within a few days to weeks. You should be able to fully resume your normal routines, including exercise, after about four weeks. That said, you should be sure to check with Dr. Contogiannis before undertaking any strenuous activities.
How Long Do Liposuction Results Last?
Liposuction results can be long-lasting when patients maintain a stable weight and healthy lifestyle after surgery. During liposuction, fat cells are permanently removed from targeted areas of the body, such as the abdomen, flanks, thighs, arms, or neck. Since the body does not regenerate fat cells in these treated areas, the contour improvements achieved through liposuction are considered permanent. Patients often notice a more sculpted and balanced silhouette once post-surgical swelling subsides, typically within several months.
That said, liposuction is not a substitute for weight loss, and it does not prevent future weight gain. If a patient gains a significant amount of weight after the procedure, remaining fat cells (both in treated and untreated areas) can expand, potentially altering results. While fat may be less likely to accumulate in liposuctioned areas, fat cells can still redistribute elsewhere in the body. For this reason, the longevity of liposuction results largely depends on long-term habits, including regular exercise, balanced nutrition, and weight stability. When these factors are maintained, liposuction can offer enduring body contouring benefits for many years.
Will I Have Liposuction Scars?
The incisions used during liposuction are typically quite small and thin, and any scarring is typically minimal and discreet. Furthermore, Dr. Contogiannis is always careful to place the incisions so that they blend in as inconspicuously as possible with the natural contours of the body or face. Most patients are able to enjoy their body contouring results with little indication that any surgery was ever performed.
How Much Does Liposuction Cost?
The average cost of liposuction treatment is around $4,711, according to recent statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). That said, liposuction cost tends to differ between patients, as each case will have different variables to consider. This estimate may also not account for things like facility fees or associated anesthesia costs. Dr. Contogiannis will thoroughly discuss your specific case during your initial consultation, at which point a personalized price estimate can be determined.
Insurance companies seldom cover the cost of cosmetic surgeries and procedures, so it’s a good idea to check with your insurance provider to find out what, if anything, they will cover for liposuction treatment.
We try to keep our services affordable as possible for our patients. We’re pleased to accept financing through Alphaeon® or CareCredit®, trusted third-party lenders who offer low- and no-interest loans for qualified applicants. Contact our office today to learn more about payment and financing options.
Are There Non-Surgical Alternatives to Liposuction?
For patients who would prefer to avoid surgery, Dr. Contogiannis does offer several alternative non-surgical and minimally-invasive fat reduction procedures.
CoolSculpting® is a popular non-surgical alternative to liposuction that works by externally applying cold temperatures to targeted regions of the body. The specialized cooling device is designed to break down and destroy fat cells without harming the surrounding skin or tissue. Over the course of the next few weeks to months, the dead fat cells are naturally filtered out of the body. This results in, on average, a 20-25% reduction in fat in the targeted area.
BodyTite™ is a minimally-invasive treatment that functions similarly to liposuction. A small cannula is used to deliver radio frequency (RF) energy into the targeted area, breaking up and liquefying the fat cells, which are then suctioned away through the cannula. Unlike liposuction, which is typically performed under general anesthesia, BodyTite™ can be administered using only local anesthesia. It also has additional skin-tightening benefits due to the unique application of RF energy.
Complements to Liposuction
Liposuction can achieve excellent results on its own, but the outcome can be even more transformative and powerful when pursued as part of a larger treatment plan. As a predictable and less invasive procedure than many other cosmetic surgeries, liposuction can often be performed at the same time as other body sculpting treatments. If excess fat buildup isn’t your only concern, you may consider combining liposuction with options like:
- Mommy Makeover: Localized fat buildup is one of the most common aesthetic concerns for women who have had children, as pregnancy often leads to the accumulation of fat cells in the abdomen, waist, upper arms, thighs, and even the submental area (“double chin”). For those who find they want to improve other body changes left after pregnancy — such as weakened abdominal musculature, stretched skin, and the loss of breast shape and volume — combining liposuction with other procedures in a Mommy Makeover can offer a more streamlined solution.
- Tummy Tuck: Liposuction and tummy tuck surgery are frequently performed together for patients who have both excess skin and fat in the midsection. Together, these body sculpting procedures can provide the most dramatic improvement in the abdominal profile for a slimmer, smoother, and more shaped silhouette.
- Facial Fat Transfer: Liposuction is also frequently paired with fat grafting to the face in order to repurpose excess fat in the thighs, abdomen, or flanks. When processed, purified, and meticulously injected, a patient’s fat can be used to replenish volume in flat, thinning, or sunken facial features. Unlike filler injections, fat transfer to the face can restore fullness in regions of depleted volume with more natural and lasting results when compared to products like Juvéderm® and Restylane®.
Once you speak with Dr. Contogiannis in a consultation, she can provide you with all of your options and formulate a personalized treatment plan to address your concerns.
For patients specifically interested in fat reduction around the face and neck, FaceTite™ may also be an option. Much like BodyTite™, FaceTite™ utilizes a small cannula that emits RF energy in order to reduce fat and tighten the skin. This creates a slimming effect while also improving skin texture and appearance.
To learn more about liposuction or to schedule a consultation with Dr. Contogiannis, please contact us today.
