What is the difference between Smart Lipo and regular Liposuction?

Hi,
purple41. Thank you for this question. It's one I hear frequently at my
practice because I offer Smartlipo. Choosing the right liposuction technique
for your needs is a decision that should be made in consultation with an
experienced cosmetic surgeon. You will hear differing opinions from different
people. Here’s what I think. Smartlipo is a versatile option that can treat
many different areas of the body and uses laser energy to liquefy fat that is
then suctioned out. A local anesthetic is all that's needed, because it's a
more comfortable procedure than traditional, manual liposuction. Also, the heat
generated by the laser helps tighten skin in the treatment area by triggering
the production of new collagen, a key element in having smooth skin as you heal.
Recovery following Smartlipo is also shorter than after manual liposuction.
Good luck with your decision!

Above all other differences, Smartlipo is safer than traditional lipo because:1. Local "tumescent" anesthesia is used rather than general anesthesia, therefore there is less risk of heart arrythmias, blood clots.2. I use microcannulas and the Smartlipo laser which cause less trauma, swelling, bruising and downtime than the larger cannulas which are used in traditional liposuction3. The smartlipo laser enhances skin smoothing, while traditional lipo cannulas risk skin indentations

Smart lipo is essentially and extra step added to a conventional lipo procedure. Marketing material from laser manufacturers sometimes creates unrealistic expectations. Conventional lipo has 2 steps: a numbing phase in which anesthetic fluid is injected into the fat, then a suction phase in which fat and fluid are extracted. Smart lipo simply adds an extra step in between in which a laser fiber is fired into the fat layer. This adds nothing to the effectiveness of the fat extraction process or to the contouring effect of fat removal. However, if the laser fiber is fired into fat near the skin surface, some of the heat is transmitted to the dermis. Heating the dermis causes it to shrink slightly. However, the skin will shrink anyway even if no laser is used, but it takes a little longer to happen. If the skin is smooth to begin with, shrinking will not cause the skin to wrinkle. However, if the skin is wrinkled to begin with, it will wrinkle.

The only difference between Smart Lipo and regular liposuction is that you add the use of a low energy laser after infiltration with tumescent solution prior to suctioning out the fat. It does not remove more fat. It does not improve contouring. These are performed (and therefore improved by technique) when aspirating the fat. It is not less traumatic. Analysis of the aspirate shows more blood product is found in laser-assisted liposuction (Smart Lipo, Slim Lipo) than in regular liposuction aspirate. The only way you have significantly less trauma, bruising, swelling, and downtime is to have less surgery (i.e. inferior work performed). As for the laser tightening your skin, your skin will tighten with ALL liposuction modalities, it just takes longer with regular liposuction (usually starts in 2-3 months).There is one other difference. Your wallet will be lighter for adding laser assist to your liposuction procedure. The laser machinery is expensive and the companies put a lot of money into their marketing and advertising propaganda.

Good Question! I usually recommend Smart Lipo to patients who have limited fat areas with mildly loose skin who are adamant that they do not want traditional liposuction or an abdominoplasty( tummy tuck). These patients could also have traditional liposuction but because the skin is a bit looser than I would like to see, I would use this technology as it gives a better skin tightening effect. However it is not a replacement for a tummy tuck or some other type of procedure depending on the area. Selection of the appropriate candidate and realistic expectations are paramount in achieving a happy patient. So to answer your question a surgeon would need to know what areas you want corrected, photos of the area, your age, health, weight, previous weight loss or gain, pregnancies etc.  These factors all need to be evaluated before you can have a reasonable answer. William Aiello, MD  Orange County CA

SmartLipo consists of performing liposuction, usually with tumescent fluid anesthesia, followed by a laser tightening of the skin. To know which one you need consider this: after the liposuction will you have mild sagging of the skin? If so, you should have the laser tightening with the liposuction performed. More on the link below. Good luck