Unevennes after lipo. Would could be done to improve it? (Photo)

Question

Hello I had HD lipo 11 months ago, Im feeling very discouraged because I feel it looks very uneven. I contacted my doctor to see what he thought he mentioned not only removing some fat but also inject some in certain areas. However, after this result I am a little worried it could come out worse than right now and I end up regretting not leaving it as is. I would love your opinion on how it looks and what you think ciuld be beneficial not to seek perfection but potentially improve it.

Connie Hiers, MD, FACS · Answer

You might try some micro-needling with radiofrequency to help tighten skin to make it look a little more smooth.

Mats Hagstrom, MD (license on probation) · Answer

Making an accurate assessment on the outcome of the plastic surgery procedure requires seeing proper before and after pictures. If you don’t have before and after pictures then ask your surgeon to forward the pictures they took. Delivering consistent quality liposuction results is more difficult than most people realize. The number of plastic surgeons who have truly mastered this procedure are in a small minority. Liposuction result have an enormous amount of potential variation, depending on which provider you choose. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of provider selection when it comes to Liposuction. Of all plastic surgery operations I see more variation, depending on who does the surgery with Liposuction than any other procedure I’ve seen. Being board-certified in plastic surgery with years of experience, and an overall good reputation does not mean that somebody has mastered any one single procedure, especially Liposuction. Revision work is generally more difficult, and more complex than primary Liposuction. For this reason patients should be highly selective and when it comes to decisions regarding revision work. Your concerns are warranted. In the hands of someone who couldn’t get the results, correct the first time revision work can definitely potentially make things worse. This is especially true in cases when the primary procedure was done aggressively or left an uneven fat distribution. 
While I personally don’t believe in doing high definition Liposuction, your results look fairly typical and are probably at least average or above average in quality. I don’t do high definition liposuction, because all too often it doesn’t look natural and the excessive removal of fat at muscle intersections can create problems in the future if people have weight gain or develop skin laxity. The potential unnatural appearance of high definition, Liposuction leads me to stay away from that type of technique though many plastic surgeons find it to be desirable and promote it. 
To make an assessment regarding revisions, we need to know the exact areas that you are concerned about and need to understand want you want to see in regards to improvements. Correcting poorly done liposuction results are generally done with additional liposuction, fat transfer, or a combination of both. In that sense, your provider is offering the correct potential solution. If what you’re trying to achieve or improve upon are straightforward and reasonable, then your provider may be the correct person to do the Revision for you. A lot depends on what you’re trying to achieve. One of the main advantages of staying with your provider is that person knows how the first procedure was performed and will most likely offer a revision either for free or at least at a discount. Your results are not bad and there’s no obvious evidence of a poorly done procedure so having your provider help you with a Revision may be highly appropriate. Choosing a new provider leaves you with uncertainty of that provider’s skill and experience and doing so will most likely be more expensive.
To find the right provider, I generally recommend patients have multiple in person consultations before choosing providers. There’s no correct number of consultations needed to find the right surgeon. Considering how much variation there is a Liposuction skill and experience I recommend patients consider having at least five in person consultations before choosing a provider. 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 to your own. An experienced plastic surgeon and should have no difficulty showing you the before, and after pictures of 50 previous patients. Being shown a handful of preselected images, representing the best results of a providers career is insufficient to get a clear understanding of what average results look like in the hands of each provider, or how many procedures they have accomplished. Finding a provider to do a revision work is more or less the same process as finding a provider to do primary Liposuction. Generally speaking the best providers at revision work are the same providers that do the best primary Liposuction. The only exception for this is when fat transfer is needed in which case patients need to vet providers for both Liposuction and fat transfer skills. 
To understand actual results we really need to see before and after pictures. Having before pictures for a comparison tells us actual change, which is a direct reflection of how the procedure was performed. 
Finally revision surgery may have inherent limitation’s and a lot of this on the patient’s candidacy for the procedure in the first place.
Choosing to have the revision procedure needs to take into consideration the potential improvement versus potential risk, discomfort, inconvenience and potential cost.
For some people a minor improvement, justifies having revision surgery for others it’s better to leave good enough alone. 
All plastic surgeons are familiar with the expression. “The enemy of good is perfect.”
Best,
Mats Hagstrom, MD

Unevennes after lipo. Would could be done to improve it? (Photo)

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Unevennes after lipo. Would could be done to improve it? (Photo)

Answers (2)

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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.