Epidural anesthesia for liposuction and BBL?

There is some literature suggesting Epidural can have lower risk of blood clots in tummy tucks and my guess they are extrapolating the information to your case. If you have a thoughtful anesthesiologist and surgeon all should be fine

this procedure is ideally performed with tumescent local and twilight sedation so that you are comfortable and don't have recollection of the procedure neither.  BBL is long procedure and comfort and piece of mind and safety is best brought together in the form of anesthesia I mention in a fully approved surgical facility.   

Thank you for your question. When an epidural anesthesia is used, IV sedation is done at the same time. If liposuction is done on the upper back, a thoracic epidural could be used, but have to be careful not to affect breathing. Epidural is not necessary for this type of body sculpting. Either IV sedation or general anesthesia is more common; I prefer the former. With IV sedation, the patient is asleep, does not feel anything, is not aware of his/her surroundings and does not remember. The patient breathes on his/her own and has no breathing tube inserted into the wind pipe and paralyzed. The recovery is 15 minutes after surgery is completed. By the time the patient is placed in the compression garment, he/she is ready to go home. With general anesthesia and/or epidural is 1-2 hours in recovery room, higher rates of postoperative nausea/vomiting.Epidural is great for child birth, it is a low, lumbar epidural, making you numb from waist down only. Less likely to give you pain relief above the bellybutton.See a board certified plastic surgeon experienced in advanced body sculpting techniques for an in person consultation/evaluation. Good luck.

Hello,Epidurals would be unsafe at the level you need it: T6 or higher. If cleared medically, general anesthesia is safe and effective. Go visit a few ABPS certified/ASAPS member surgeons who specialize in body contouring. Best of luck!

I use general anesthesia, because it allows for more fat removal and body shaping. For best results, I recommend a hi definition procedure like VASER liposuction, which can be performed at the same time as a tummy tuck, depending on skin laxity. I use VASER HI DEF with ThermiRF and fat grafting to get the most fat removal, skin tightening, contour and definition. This combination will give you the most toned result. I recommend getting a formal evaluation with a hi definition physique expert. Best, Dr. Emer

Most cosmetic centers don't offer epidural anesthesia for body procedures such as liposuction or fat transfer. While your procedure could be done that way, it is not as reliable, fast, or cost effective as simple general anesthesia. Also, you are awake with an epidural, which may not be as pleasant as sleeping through the procedure.

While epidural anesthesia may be appropriate for procedures on the trunk, it is not commonly done for elective cosmetic surgery of the abdomen and flanks. Part of this is that there are risks with epidural injection/instrumentation that may not be warranted for elective cosmetic surgery, even if they are rare. Additionally, epidurals only provide numbness but preserve awareness of the procedure. For labor/childbirth, this is often desirable so the patient can be present mentally for the birth of her child; for an operation with a lot of activity like liposuction (it's not exactly a finesse procedure in many cases, but a lot of physical manual labor for the surgeon and team), I'm not sure I'd want to be awake if I were the patient. Additionally, the abdominal and back sensation may go higher than an epidural level would reach and I just don't see the value. I also find I can be more efficient and aggressive if I don't have to be worried about patient awareness, sensation or anxiety so I perform these procedures under general anesthesia for the most part.

There is nothing inherently wrong with using an epidural for a BBL. There is nothing inherently wrong with using an epidural for a BBL.The type of anesthesia should be based on your surgeons together with that of the anesthesiologist. It is highly unlikely he will get an anesthesiologist to answer your question so the ability to give me a definitive answers is limited. Being placed in the face down position while under general Anastasia has some Inherent risks and that if the breathing tube comes out the patient in the compromised situation. Inherent risks and that if the breathing tube comes out the patient in the compromised situation.General Anastasia is probably the most common form of anesthesia for a BBL.  Epidurals are considered safe but can’t have some complications such as a leak of the fluid around the spinal cord which can cause headaches.  You can potentially be other complications or side effects as well. Personally I preferred to keep my patients awake during both liposuction and fat transfer procedures relying on local anesthesia with mild sedation. It’s a tolerable experience for the patient and has numerous advantages.   In my opinion the use of local anesthesia with mild sedation allows me to get substantially improved aesthetic results, improved safety, gives a faster recovery and lower cost Best,Mats Hagstrom M.D. 

An epidural anesthetic is one option but not one that I would consider frequently for that surgical procedure.  If you're healthy I would recommend a light general anesthesia so you have no awareness of the procedure and a quick recovery.

It's also important to note that there's recently been published guidelines to enhance the safety of fat injection into the buttocks which I think you should be sure your surgeon is aware of.  There have been a few deaths from fat embolism and the procedure must be performed especially carefully to reduce these risks.  Discuss this with your surgeon before proceeding.  Best wishes,
Jon A Perlman M.D., FACSDiplomate, American Board of Plastic SurgeryMember, American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS)ABC-TV Extreme Makeover SurgeonBeverly Hills, CaliforniaIG: jonperlmanmd