Non-Invasive Lipo - real or fake?

No, I don't recommend attempting to do this type of treatment yourself. These types of treatments should be done by a professional. You have a few options. Coolsculpting is good for stubborn areas of fat and gets good results in combination with radiofrequency treatments like Vanquish, Venus Legacy, Exilis Ultra for skin tightening and with Z wave/Cellutone for skin smoothing. VASER liposuction with ThermiRF is a great alternative. See an expert for a formal evaluation. Best, Dr. Emer

Real tumescent liposuction is still the best answer for contouring the areas but sometimes you can get a few little waviness or uneven spots after liposuction which respond very well to the noninvasive lipo treatments such as Body FX 3rd generation Radiofrequency. On their own, most noninvasive lipo treatments which are usually done in a series of 6 weekly treatments gives minimal results.

Hi BuddingtonBear,

Non invasives can help for small areas, if you are pinching an area and you can grab a handful you will likely be disappointed.  Non invasives sound attractive to consumers but it relies on your body's ability to remove fat vs a lipo procedure where the fat is extracted from the body and you know that it is permanently removed.  Downtime is very minimal with liposculpture and results can be life changing.  If that is what you are looking for, hands down minimally invasive liposculpture.  

Hope this helps!

I come at this question from a surgeon's perspective, anything that does not actually remove fat can only be a gamble in the best case scenario. Nothing wrong with surgery done in the proper setting!

In our experience, the minimal benefic associated with most forms of non-invasive fat removal do not justify their cost.  In the long-term, the "fat reduction" tends to be temporary and the results are not long-lasting.
However, in the right hands, lipo can be:
1- Very minimally invasive; there is only local anesthesia
2- Permanent.  Or at least much much longer lasting
3- Almost equally safe. 
4- A one-time treatment, rather than a series of sessions spread over weeks.
Ultimately, you want to see an experienced practitioner who is able to assess you and provide you with the best advice.  Make sure you see plenty of before and after photos.
Hope that helps.

Hello and thank you for your excellent question. There are many minimally-invasive techniques available to assist with fat removal. Before I would invest money in a machine that promises amazing results with little down-side, I would take a very close look at the evidence supporting its claims. My experience with hand-held, home or portable based diode lasers for body contouring has been unimpressive. Some products will work... you just need to make sure that its efficacy matches your desired results.  Good luck! 

Best,

Jon Ver Halen, MD FACS 
Harvard educated plastic surgeon