Nick Slenkovich, MD

Excellent question, and one that I put to the manufacturer of the Vaser directly. Their answer---no scientific papers have established skin tightening for Vaser liposuction.

Liposuction now comes in many types:

• Traditional Liposuction--where no energy source is applied internally

• Ultrasonic Liposuction (Vaser)--where internal ultrasonic energy is used

• Laser Liposuction (Smart Lipo, Cool Lipo)--where internal laser energy is used

All of these approaches utilize infiltration of fluid that decreases bruising and typically has local anesthetic. Traditional liposuction has stood the test of time and safety, and is the only one of the three that cannot cause a burn of the skin. Internal laser techniques are the newest.

Suffice it that there is considerable disagreement among surgeons about the differences in the relative benefits to each of these techniques. Despite the marketing hype, there is no one best liposuction technology or technique.

Bottom Line: Many claims are about Ultrasonic and Laser devices that are not supported in the scientific literature. I believe that the tool used by your surgeon is far less important than the skill with which the tool is used.

Hope this helps.