Do I need J Plasma with my lipo? (photos)

Question

I recently got quoted on lipo for arms, flanks, back, and tummy - my surgeon also recommended I get j plasma which is an additional fee or $5000/treatment and since i'm dividing my abdomen/back/flanks ($9-12k) as one procedure and arms as another ($1.5k) that would be $10000 total. Are these prices reasonable as well? I do not drink or smoke, and relatively healthy, 23 years old, weigh about 75KG but usually weigh less, and 5'8".

Yily De Los Santos, MD · Answer

Thank you for your question and pictures. 
Yes, it would get better results for get a liposuction with J-plasma. 
If you're willing to travel, Surgeons in the Dominican Republic have experience and very high standard of excellence when it comes to plastic surgery. I'm positive you can get what you're looking for.

Jason Emer, MD · Answer

if you have loose skin you need skin removal. renuvion with liposuction will give some improvement but you will have loose skin still.

my whole practice is doing lipoabdominoplasty, or at least liposuction with internal heating (which is not the gold standard for skin tightening with body contouring).

the smaller you are before liposuction the more contouring you can get from the procedure. most of my liposuction patients get pre and post surgical optimization with hormonal therapy (see link to help boost their weight loss before surgery and help them heal after).

You need a formal evaluation by an expert in body shaping and contouring to determine what is best.  Traditional liposuction awake and smart liposuction are old methods and do very poorly for tightening skin or significant skin tightening or contouring.  Small problem areas can be improved slightly by these methods.  The best in body contouring not only removes fat with energy devices like VASER ultrasound but also internally heat the skin with radio-frequency devices such as J PLASMA/RENUVION, InMode BodyTite, ThermiRF to heat the under surface of the skin and tighten it at the same time as fat removal. These combinations are called 4D HIDEF VASER contouring and can only be done by a well . trained body contouring specialist. At the same time fat should be harvested, PRP and stem cells added and injected into muscles or indentations/cellulite to get body shaping and contouring.  This is known as a Brazilian butt lift when you inject the fat to the buttock for contouring and lifting, but fat can also be used in areas such as the chest/breast, arms/shoulders, calves and face.  Cellulite should also be treated with cellfina, sculptra, subcision and/or fillers such as bellafill, renuva synthetic fat, or sculptra.  If skin is very loose before surgery then it will need to be removed such as lower abdominal skin (tummy tuck/abdominoplasty), breast skin (breast lift), arm skin (brachioplasty).  Overall you need a full assessment, but simple liposuction alone will not tighten skin and needs a combination of various methods -- fat removal, skin tightening, defining, fat grafting, skin removal -- to get the best in body contouring and body sculpting.  Dr. Emer.

Daniel Barrett, MD · Answer

Dear penguinsandgoats,
it is hard to tell for sure without an examination. Based on your photos, it looks like you would benefit from liposuction. If you are considering a surgery, I would suggest you to consult a board-certified plastic surgeon. Only after a thorough examination you will get more information and recommendations.
Daniel Barrett, MD
Certified, American Board of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Plastic Surgery
Member, American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

When J plasma first came out as a skin tightening device I purchased it because I wanted to be able to offer some thing for patients with mild skin laxity in addition to liposuction and fat transfer which are the only procedures I have performed for the last decade. The first 10 years of practice I did general plastic surgery but the second 10 years have been devoted exclusively to doing only liposuction and fat transfer.  Because I specialize in just one procedure I have substantial amount of experience and I am considered a specialist in Liposuction.

My first hand experience with renuvion or J plasma was that it did not increase skin tightening at all and this was confirmed by objective measurements, subjective assessment and patient confirmation. I used a device for one year and then sold it. I did find that the device significantly increased pain during and after the procedure which makes sense since it’s burning tissue.

The device may have usefulness as an ablative facial resurfacing tool but for body contouring it will I believe become obsolete soon.

In my opinion it simply doesn’t work.

The biggest variable when it comes to liposuction results as who does the procedure and I cannot emphasize provider selection enough.

Choose providers who have the most experience. This means during an in person consultation a provider should be able to show you a minimum of $.50 of before and after pictures of the area you’re interested in or more. A highly experienced provider will have hundreds or as in my case thousands of before and after pictures of just the one area you’re interested in.

This combined with the absence of any significant number of justified negative reviews and various physician review websites tends to be the golden ticket for the most talented providers regardless of procedure. The most experience without upsetting any significant number of patients is the hallmark of excellence.

In the clinic I work for a full abdomen starts at $10,000, the back is an additional $4000 and arms typically run $5000. These prices are all inclusive. The procedures are done with patients awake using local anesthesia with mild sedation. We use a technique called air sculpt.

Price is no guarantee of quality work but rarely do the best surgeons give deep discounts. There are however plenty of surgeons who charge high prices and really don’t have superior skill.  Doing liposuction is perhaps the easiest procedure in the book but doing it well turns out to be one of the most difficult. there’s no shortage of posts on real self of patients who’ve been disfigured from this procedure to prove my point.

It can give stunning permanent body transformations with very high accuracy and predictability when done by experience providers who have the ability to properly assess patients and implement the procedure correctly.

I recommend everybody have multiple in person consultations but if you feel comfortable with your provider then that may be sufficient for you. Personally I would include your arms with your torso as a single procedure but I do respect surgeons who split procedures. Doing so generally represents an ideal that leans towards being a patient advocate more than personal greed.

You do  look like a good candidate for Liposuction. Best luck with your upcoming procedure regardless of what you choose to do.

Recognize that this is just my opinion and opinions will differ among different providers.

Best,

Mats Hagstrom MD

Mary Lee Peters, MD (retired) · Answer

This sounds suspicious to me.  There is no evidence based proof that J plasma injections have any benefit at all except to the surgeon's pocketbook.  I strongly recommend that you get a second or third opinion.

Do I need J Plasma with my lipo? (photos)

Answers (5)

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