What is the best treatment to get rid of saddlebags?

Question

I'm looking for a solution to finally get rid of my saddlebags. I'm looking for the best method to spot reduce fat in that area and the inner thighs. I'm concerned about skin laxity and wondering- does liposuction make your butt look too square?

Timothy M. Bradley, MD · Answer

“Saddlebags” are localized fat deposits of the outer thigh region . They can be small and liposuction can be quite effective correcting this contour deformity if a patient has good skin tone.”spot reduction” is what liposuction does best and why it was first introduced, unfortunately , too many patients look to liposuction for weight loss. For “spot reduction” , good skin tone and minor to moderate amount of fat to be removed are prerequisites for aesthetically pleasing outcomes.If the fat collection is larger, and/or the patient has less than ideal skin quality, liposuction MUST be combined with a lifting procedure in order to produce proper contour and smooth skin. This applies to both medial/inner thighs and lateral thighs. The scars from these surgical lifting procedures can be well hidden under the bathing suit or underwear. Without a surgical lifting procedure, liposuction by itself will result in de-stabilized, sagging skin and a contour depression. In the inner thighs, this deformity is known as a “shark bite deformity”, and this is an accurate description as to what liposuction of the inner thighs can lookLike if too much fat is removed or liposuction is performed in a patient with poor skin quality. The skin can only retract so much following liposuction.Your surgeon must know the limitations of liposuction and also have the knowledge & surgical ability to perform these combination procedures when indicated. Start the process by consulting with experienced Board certified Plastic Surgeons . Be wary of those advertising theme selves as “certified cosmetic surgeons” . (There are no legitimate “board certified Cosmetic surgeons”.) Check out the new laws passed in California which prohibits non Board Certified Plastic Surgeons from advertising themselves as such, included “cosmetic surgeons”. All to say, be sure with whoever you decide to have your procedure to treat your saddlebags and inner thighs is qualified to do so . Once the deformities which I have discussed occur, they are exceeding difficult to fully correct. The best way of handling cosmetic surgery complications is to avoid them in the first place. Best wishes

Daniel Barrett, MD · Answer

Dear alittlehelpplz,
it is hard to tell for sure without an examination. Generally speaking, liposuction is a great option for body contouring. 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

Jason Emer, MD · Answer

we need to see photos to help typically this area needs liposuction with bodytite or renuvion.

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.

Michele A. Shermak, MD · Answer

Hello!
The best treatment typically involved liposuction of the outer thigh. If you have skin laxity, this may be further improved with a hip lift that could extend to the abdomen or back. Lipo of the inner thigh may also be performed. Liposuction using PAL or Vaser can provide some skin tightening in addition to contour improvement.
I would recommend you see a board certified plastic surgeon. She/he has all the "tools" she/he needs in their "chest" to provide you the most impactful, optimal treatment plan. You can find one at plasticsurgery.org.
Best of luck to you!

Benjamin Van Raalte, MD · Answer

The examination determines skin laxity in the saddlebag and inner thighs. All treatments that reduce fat can result in laxity issues especially if there is poor quality skin, weight loss, or both. In those cases you might look better in tight clothes but be disappointed in the appearance naked. Trusculpt 3D can remove 30% of the fat layer and has a small amount of skin tightening due to the radiofrequency. Like the other non invasive treatments, about 20% of patients will not see improvement.  Liposuction is the definitive treatment for fat reduction, and although claims have been made of the superiority of one method of liposuction over another, there has been no definitive proof that one method has better skin tightening. In fact, one study showed the laser liposuction had more complications, but no better tightening than standard tumescent liposuction

Ersin Gonullu, MD · Answer

the liposuction procedure on saddle bags or inner thigh should be done more carefully as these areas are more prone to get deformed or sagged. if needed it should be done more than one session in order to let the skin have time to tightened after the operation. you may need to have J Plasma for more skin tightening affect or a thigh lift operation also if the excess skin is too much than your skin contraction capacity. for your information

John A. Perrotti, MD · Answer

Liposuction is the gold standard for hard to loose fat areas in the outer and inner thighs, and generally provides excellent results.  It is also best for you, and the surgeon, that you are at a healthy, if not your goal weight.  Skin laxity is best determined at in person consultation. It is most important to find a place and a surgeon with the training and experience to help you get the results that you desire.

Mark T. Boschert, MD · Answer

Saddlebags are easily treated with liposuction. That area responds very well and can be sculpted to give a very nice shape. Liposuction is a wonderful tool that your surgeon use and can explain to you how they can make the buttocks look round and not square! Best of luck! Dr. Boschert

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

In order for us to make an assessment you need to post pictures. True saddlebags respond well to liposuction. If the fullness is on the backside of the outer thigh towards what some people referred to as the banana roll Liposuction is less effective because the area represents bulging the skin in a standing position. True lateral fullness responds well to liposuction because it’s usually not related to positioning or skin.

Inner thigh Liposuction typically does not deliver the results patients had hoped for but it can give it some improvement especially for those who have tight skin.

I suggest having a few in person consultations with local board-certified plastic surgeons.

I do not recommend any other fat removal treatment like cool sculpting.

Best,

Mats Hagstrom MD

Frederic H. Corbin, MD (license restricted) · Answer

Thank you for the question and well performed liposuction should give you the desired result if performed well. So go on some consultations with experts and compare recommendations after a full examination and look at photos of similar patients and become fully informed about the desired procedure

Dr Corbin

Dr Corbin

What is the best treatment to get rid of saddlebags?

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