I Want to Have Liposuction Done on my Inner Thighs, but I Have Stretchmarks There.

Medial thigh liposuction is a very successful procedure that benefits many patients.

The caveats:  Liposuction won't tighten the skin, so if the skin is loose, say from massive weight loss, liposuction results may be disappointing.

Also, the patient's entire figure must be considered, not just the one area.  Would liposuction just in the medial thighs cause the leg to look blocky?  Often adjacent areas can be done as well to avoid this.

Stretchmarks usually respond somewhat to lasers, with repeated treatments of fractional lasers giving the best results.

Most doctors now use tumescent anesthesia in some form.  Depending on the tolerance of the patient, this can be performed under local anesthesia alone, local anesthesia with sedation, or a light general anesthesic.

For larger cases, or cases where the patient's tolerance for discomfort is low, sedation or a light general anesthesic are options.

Liposuction can definitely get rid of the fat in your thighs, however if you have loose skin it will become more apparent, which would hide your results.  It will not improve your stretch marks, but that doesn't mean it's not appropriate for you. Please see an experienced board certified plastic surgeon for a physical examination to determine the most suitable treatment. You may need a thigh lift instead.

You are still a good candidate for liposuction, regardless of your stretch marks. The liposuction may not improve the appearance of your stretch marks, but you are still young so your skin may retract (tighten up).

Thank you for your question. Without photos or an examination it is impossible to know whether your skin has the capacity to "snap back" after liposuction. Stretch marks are a sign of loss of elasticity of the skin.  See a plastic surgeon in your area to see if you are a good candidate. Best of luck.

The bottom line is that you need to have a face to face consultation with a Plastic Surgeon to learn about the options based on the physical exam. It's reasonable to get a few opinions before you decide to have a procedure. Keep in mind that even with excellent skin quality there is still a risk for irregularities especially with liposuction of the medial thighs. 

Without photos or a face to face examination it is impossible to know if you are a candidate for the procedure. You need to know that liposuction of the upper inner thighs yields uniformly bad results when liposuction is overdone in the area because the skin attachments to deeper structures are so loose and bad results are almost impossible to fix in this area. Therefore liposuction of the upper inner thighs should be very conservative. Stretchmarks in the area make the risk of a bad result greater so you need to be even more conservative than usual.

My response to your question/post does not represent formal medical advice or constitute a doctor patient relationship. You need to consult with i.e. personally see a board certified plastic surgeon in order to receive a formal evaluation and develop a doctor patient relationship.

Liposuction can be performed when you have stretch marks and sometimes can even make them look better but never dissappear.  I would need to see pictures to know if any other procedures would work. 

Stretchmarks don't prevent you from having liposuction.  Most times you are going to get a great improvement even with/without stretchmarks.  The skin tightens more if you don't have stretchmarks but still it is worth it. Just be sure to get the tumescent technique liposuction with the micro canulas under local (not general) when you are working on thighs and calves and ankles.  I also would avoid the problems that we are now seeing with laser liposuctions such as dimpling, puckering and burns.  Sincerely,

David Hansen,MD

In my opinion liposuction is the best option for the inner thighs even if you have stretch marks. The only alternative is a thigh  lift which leaves a bad scar. Even in gastric bypass patients who have loose skin after weight loss I still do the liposuction in 80% of the patients and only do the lift in the patient's very bad skin.

It is difficult to say whether you are a good candidate or not without an exam.. Stretch marks may or may not get worse with liposuction but do suggest that the skin quality is not great.