Rippling and loose skin after Laser Lipo

The delivery of laser energy to the skin was thought to be able to tighten the skin. Unfortunately it does very little to tighten the skin. Redundant skin will require surgical excision.

Thank you for the question.  How much skin will "tighten" will depend on the quality of skin elasticity of the overlying skin.  Generally, younger patients and patients whose skin does not demonstrate loss of elasticity (physical findings of stretch marks, irregularities etc.), tend to do better with liposuction surgery.  Many patients who present for liposuction surgery are not good candidates for the procedure.  Ultimately, it is better not to undergo the liposuction procedure if the outcome leaves the patient with skin contour irregularities or other aesthetic problems that he/she is displeased with (and are very difficult to correct). This is one of the many reasons patients are better off seeking consultation with board-certified plastic surgeons who have the full "armamentarium" of procedures at their disposal.



Generally speaking, good candidates for liposuction surgery are patients who present with localized areas of diet and exercise resistant adipose tissue and an overlying skin “envelope” that demonstrates good skin elasticity. 



My best suggestion again: make sure that your selected surgeon is a board-certified plastic surgeon giving you good/ethical advice. Best wishes.

Thank you for your question.  With a small roll of residual fat left after laser lipo, the options include revisionary lipo with or without laser, Zeltiq is a fat freezing treatment that is effective. Ultrashape uses ultrasound to melt fat. In terms of the skin looseness, there are radiofrequency devices such as Titan, light based devices such as SkinTyte.  While these are not surgical proecdures there is cost associated with the treatments. In most cases there is significant but modest improvement.  Best wishes!