Is SmartLipo the Same as Liposuction?


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SmartLipo is a type of procedure that may be termed cosmetic surgery. SmartLipo is designed to remove excess body fat. Natural beauty, although admired is not important to many people and enhancing outward appearance using cosmetic procedures like Botox and breast implants are becoming more common place. It seems that cosmetic procedures are really popular and you probably already know someone who has had some sort of cosmetic surgery or procedure.

Is SmartLipo the same as liposuction?

The procedure is similar to liposuction with some differences that may make SmartLipo a good alternative to traditional liposuction. SmartLipo essentially permanently removes your excess fat however without the suction removal of the fat. The body fat is dissolved or liquefied (turned into liquid) using a medical laser instead of suction.

What is SmartLipo or laser liposuction?

SmartLipo is termed laser liposuction. Liposuction actually suctions fat away whereas SmartLipo dissolves fat, instead of fat being suctioned. However the dissolved fat can also be suctioned away during SmartLipo if you prefer this option. It is not necessary to remove the dissolved fat because it can be removed by your body's circulatory systems (blood and lymph vessels) in the same way as other excess liquids within the body are removed.

Unlike traditional liposuction you will not undergo a full general anaesthetic and be put to sleep. Only the areas of your body where you having fat removed will be anaesthetised with local anaesthetic. This is much safer than having a general anaesthetic because there are many potential complications associated with general anaesthesia. Now the procedure is the same as for traditional liposuction where small a cannula (a thin hollow tube) is inserted underneath the skin, similarly to inserting a needle under the skin. However instead of a suction device creating suction inside the cannula that occurs for traditional liposuction (to draw out fat into a collecting cylinder), a small medical laser (a thin fibre) is inserted inside the cannula for SmartLipo. However, SmartLipo is a less invasive procedure for removing fat compared to traditional liposuction because the size of the cannulae that are used is smaller than for traditional liposuction. The SmartLipo cannula is 1-2 mm in diameter is tiny in comparison to traditional sizes of up to 6 mm for liposuction. Cannula may also have different types of tips and sizes of holes compared to cannula used for liposuction. The small size also allows the surgeon to remove fat closer to the skin surface with minimal risk of damaging the appearance of the skin. The major disadvantage is that if you want weight loss by fat removal this process is not effective. Although, minimally invasive and less risky due to local anaesthesia SmartLipo removes only small amounts of fat. This process is designed for only relatively small areas of fat removal such as during body sculpting. Typically healthy people who are not overweight may have areas of fat removed such as on their inner thighs or stomach to improve their existing shape or appearance of muscle tone.

Can SmartLipo be performed on any area of my body?

SmartLipo can be performed on calves, ankles, knees, inner thighs, hips, buttocks, stomach, back, breasts, neck, under the chin, under the jaw, and some facial areas.

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