Post lipo: Arm contour irregularities, uneven fat, skin laxity. How can skin be tightened and the areas smoothed? (Photos)

Question

I had arm lipo over 4 months ago and am concerned about some persisting issues. *   Disproportionate bulk (not sure if skin or fat) - at the top of my arm near the front armpit - roll at the bottom of my upper arm, close to the elbow *   Overall skin laxity and creasing/looseness *   Large vein over bicep prominent *   Contour unevenness and banding Need advisement of if extra bulk/rolls ares skin or fat and what best option would be to resolve both this as well as tightening loose skin in those areas and smoothing out overall contour irregularities.

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

Upper extremity Liposuction is technically challenging.The ability to deliver consistent quality Liposuction results is more difficult than most people realize.The number of plastic surgeons who approach mastery of this kind of work is in reality quite small.Converting poorly down Liposuction to a high quality outcome is inherently difficult and sometimes not possible.Typically revision is done with a combination of revision liposuction with or without fat transfer.There’s almost always a room for some improvement.The amount of improvement possible typically depends on two main variables.The first is how much fat is left to work with.The second is typically the patient level of candidacy for the procedure in the first place.In a nutshell, ideal candidates for Liposuction are young, have tight skin and access subcutaneous fat.While your outcome is not ideal it’s definitely not the worst I’ve seen.You shouldWhile you’re outcome is not ideal it’s definitely not the worst I’ve seen.You should be able to improve the outcome, but it’s never going to be as good as if the procedure was done by a really skilled plastic surgeon in the first place.The biggest hurdle or the most difficult next step is going to be finding as sufficiently experienced plastic surgeon.To find the right plastic surgeon I suggest you do the following.First get a complete before and after pictures from your providers office as well as a copy of their operative report guideThese are part of your medical record that you can request.Next make a list of plastic surgeons in your area and seem to have exceptional reputations for liposuction and or fat transfer. Look for plastic surgeons for focus exclusively on Liposuction if possible.Next schedule in person consultations with each of those providers.There’s no correct number of consultations needed to find the right provider.The more consultations you schedule the more likely you are to find a better provider for your needs. The biggest mistake I see patients make is having only one consultation and then scheduling surgery.Having only one consultation, more or less eliminates the ability to choose a better provider.Bring pictures of yourself to use for reference during the consultation.During each consultation, ask each provider to open up their portfolio and show you their entire collection of before, and after pictures of previous patients who had similar body characteristics.In your case you’re looking for providers to show you as many before, and after pictures of previous patients who had arm Liposuction, whose arms looked like yours did. Plastic surgeons may have only limited numbers of pictures of revision work because revision work is not as common as primary procedures.The best surgeons to do revision work are the same doctors who do the best primary procedures.The only exception to this is a fat transfer is needed. You need someone who has experience with fat transfer as well as Liposuction. Being shown a handful of outcomes representing only the best results of a providers career is insufficient.You need to see enough results to get a clear understanding of what average results look like in the hands of each provider guide.If they don’t have a good collection of before and after pictures, then they are either Not talented enough or don’t have enough experience.Surgeons may be apprehensive of showing you anything but the best results. AndSufficiently experienced provider should have enoughSurgeons may be apprehensive of showing you anything but they best results. AndSufficiently experienced provider should have more before and after pictures than you have time to look at during the consultation.You should be able to see the outcome of at least 10 to 20 patients.Take careful notes during each consultation.This is especially true for the quantity and quality of before and after pictures.Revision work is much more difficult than primary procedures.Plastic surgeons who think it’s easy to improve the outcome may have insufficient experience.Recognize that any attempt and improving your outcome can easily make things worse unless you’re working with a really talented provider.There is no procedure that actually tighten skin other than skin excision.I personally do not believe Renuvion or Bodytite delivers anything close to what the companies claimProper skin tightening comes with undesirable scars when it comes to arm treatments.Finding the right provider is going to be time-consuming and may involve expense.It’s well worth it as an investment in yourself considering that the results of these procedures are permanent and often should be considered irreversible.I suggest you start by having four or five consultations and see how things go.You may need more consultations than that to find someone who has mastered this kind of work.Average plastic surgeons do average work payOnly exceptional plastic surgeons Deliver exceptional Out outcomes.When it comes to Liposuction average work often isn’t all that impressive.This response was dictated.My apologies for grammatical errors.Good luck,Mats Hagstrom MD

Post lipo: Arm contour irregularities, uneven fat, skin laxity. How can skin be tightened and the areas smoothed? (Photos)

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Post lipo: Arm contour irregularities, uneven fat, skin laxity. How can skin be tightened and the areas smoothed? (Photos)

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Everything you need to know about Liposuction Revision

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.