Has the scarless tummy tuck arrived?

There has been a lot of interest in the idea of enhancing skin shrinkage with liposuction, and some are even calling it the scarless tummy tuck. There was a spirited discussion on this at the recent meeting of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. In a nutshell, here are the issues: skin shrinks to varying degrees with plain liposuction, so any enhancements have to be measured in comparison to that. Then there are 3 technologies that have all presented research data showing more skin tightening after lipo: laser (for example Smart Lipo), VASER (ultrasound), and Thermage, given immediately after the liposuction (that was my own research and presented at the meeting.) However, none of these do what a tummy tuck does so be very skeptical of any marketing pitches that position them as an "alternative" to tummy tuck.

This is the key question in answering who is a good candidate for liposuction and who is not.  The skin that will shrink well is thick, healthy, has few to no stretchmarks, no rolls or folds, and doesn't continue to wiggle for a few seconds after you shake it.

If the skin is good, it will shrink after liposuction.  If it is not, the skin will be lax and disappointing looking.  Please understand that no liposuction technology (ie Smartlipo or laser lipo) will make the skin shrink better than mother nature.

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Unfortunately liposuction does not shrink and tighten the skin despite the claim of many of the newly introduced "smart' devices. Skin laxity is in general a consistent and permanent occurrence and can only be treated by lifts and excisional surgery such as an Abdominoplasty. Liposuction in face of loose skin can make matters worse and create further laxity. So make sure that you understand the mechanism liposuction and more importantly make sure you wee out the false claims of many of the newly introduced devices.

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