Is General Anesthesia Worth the Cost with Smart Lipo MPX?

asked 1 year ago by jeanne81 in San Antonio TX
Latest answer by Jeffrey Adelglass, MD
Question viewed 849 times
Tags: age 25-34, back, lower abs, upper abs, female, anesthesia, love handles

I am 29, active, no kids. I had a consulatation with a Dr. in San Antonio that is board certified. I want to have lipo in my lower/upper abs, "love handles" and back. I was told about traditional liposuction and Smart lipo. From the information that I received Smart Lipo seemed to be right for me. My main concern is that my Dr recommended GA, due to the fact that some patients find it uncomfortable with the tucking and pulling feeling. Is GA worth the money?

11 answers to Is General Anesthesia Worth the Cost with Smart Lipo MPX?

General Anesthesia Worth the Cost with Smart Lipo MPX

ABSOLUTELY!!! MPX Smart lipo on ALL those areas can be very very uncomfortable to say the least. I have done over a 1,000 MPX Smart Lipos and always recommend a light face mask type of general anesthesia. The more surface areas needed to be treated the more the need for a deeper anesthesia. So the complete abdomen, back, love handles becomes a larger area than you can imagine. Sounds like you doctor has your care and good outcome in order. Regards Dr. DarrylJj. Blinski, NATIONAL... more

Darryl J. Blinski, MD
Miami Plastic Surgeon

No reason for general anesthesia

There is absolutely no reason to have the added risks of general anesthesia. We have done thousands of these procedures using "conscious sedation" with zero complaints about pain. We use the same medications that are used during a colonoscopy with great results. This is the best, cheapest way with safety being a primary concern. We offer free consultations if you have any further questions. Take care

Jeffrey Adelglass, MD
Dallas Facial Plastic Surgeon

General Anesthesia Saves Time

General anesthesia is only needed when multiple areas are being done. Most Smart Lipo procedures can easily and safely be performed under local anesthesia, or local anesthesia with sedation. Toxicity can occur if too much local anesthetic is used at one setting. Therefore your doctor is considering general anesthesia due to multiple areas. Even with general anesthesia, it is usually only a light general anesthetic with the patient asleep, but breathing on their own... more

Keith Denkler, MD
Marin Plastic Surgeon

General anesthesia increases your risk of serious complications in exchange for being totally out during the procedure.

General anesthesia increases the risk of serious adverse effects following liposuction in exchange for being totally unaware of the procedure while it is being performed. Most patients do very well with conscious sedation and tumescent anesthesia and few patients remember much if anything of the procedure.

Mark Taylor, MD
Salt Lake City Dermatologic Surgeon

Smartlipo works with local anesthesia

Smartlipo works well with local anesthesia, however, there is a limit to how much can be done at one time. For all of the areas you want to do, you would need to break it up into at least two sessions to avoid getting too much local anesthesia. General anesthesia is always an option but many of my patients strongly want to avoid it.

Daryl K. Hoffman, MD
Los Gatos Plastic Surgeon

Smart Lipo MPX and type of anesthsia

Any type of liposuction, whether it be laser assisted liposuction (Smart lipo MPX), ultrasound assisted liposuction (Vaser lipo), or traditional liposuction (tumescent liposuction) can be performed under local anesthesia or local with IV sedation - IF the area is small (the size of one or two palms). If the are is large (such as the entire abdomen and flanks) or if the area is very dense (such as a man's chest), I would suggest general anesthesia. You will be more... more

Vincent D. Lepore, MD
San Jose Plastic Surgeon

No need for general anesthesia

There is no reason that Smartlipo cannot be performed under local anesthesia with a small amount of oral sedation. Patients are comfortable, the procedure is safer and the postoperative recovery is usually easier for the pateint without general anesthesia.

Edgar Franklin Fincher, MD, PhD
Beverly Hills Dermatologic Surgeon

Smartlipo is ideally performed under local anesthesia or IV sedation

Smartlipo is ideally performed under local anesthesia or IV sedation. General anesthesia should not be necessary to perform the procedure.

Edward Lack, MD
Chicago Dermatologist

SMARTLIPO MPX Anesthesia: General or Local-Sedation

SMARTLIPO MPX treatments can be performed under both General and Local-Sedation anesthesia. The number and volume of the areas to be treated and each individual patients response to anesthetic agents determines the best choice. If a patient fears General Anesthesia and 3 or less small area need to be treated, SMARTLIPO MPX can be used under Local-Sedation Anesthesia. If a patient has had a history of previous dental or skin surgery under Local Anesthesia that did not provide... more

Christopher D. Prevel, MD
Orlando Plastic Surgeon

General anesthesia is not worth the risk with SmartLipo MPX

General anesthesia should never be used with any type of liposuction. I have performed liposuction since 1995 and have done every case with local (tumescent) anesthesia. I use ProLipo (same wavelengths as SmartLipo) as well as SlimLipo for laser-assisted liposuction. Proper tumescent anesthesia should provide excellent comfort. Usually any discomfort is handled simply by adding a little more local anesthetic to the specific area. Many patients request a mild sedative before the... more

Robert C. Langdon, MD
Guilford Dermatologic Surgeon

Anesthesia for SmartLipo

In general, anesthesia options for SmartLipo, as with traditional liposuction, include local anesthesia, sedation anesthesia, or general anesthesia. For limited areas, or for a patient that doesn't mind the discomfort of the local anesthesia, local anesthesia alone, perhaps with an oral dose of Valium, is adequate. For more extensive areas (and yours is bordering on this), sedation anesthesia is more comfortable for the patient. In addition to the local anesthesia,... more