Who is Qualified to Do Liposuction?

While many people do liposuction, many of those people should not be doing liposuction. Plastic surgeons are specifically trained to do liposuction as part of their surgical education. Many other specialities (just look through the ads in a newspaper on any given day) advertise that they do liposuction as well. However, it is unclear to me where they get their training. My best advice would be to go to a few consultations to plastic surgeons who have performed liposuction on people you know that have had nice results. If you do not know anyone who has had liposuction, ask the surgeon if any of their patients would be wiling to talk to you about their procedure. Questions to ask the doctor include: What type of liposuction they do? What type of anesthesia is used? How many liposuction procedures they perform in a given month? How often do they have to make revisions? How much do they plan to aspirate? If they are doing the liposuction in their office or a surgicenter, ask them at which hospital do they have admitting privileges?
You should find a surgeon who you feel comfortable with and who takes the time to answer all of your questions and addresses your concerns.

Thank you for your question. If you are thinking about Liposuction. Always be sure to choose a board certified plastic surgeon who has experience. Best of luck! Dhaval M. Patel Double board certified Plastic surgeon Hoffman Estates  Barrington Oakbrook Chicago 

Laws tend to vary from state.  In most states, any medical doctor with a license can perform liposuction.  However, it is vital that one remembers liposuction is a surgical procedure requiring special training, expertise, and experience.  Just because any licensed doctor can perform the procedure, does not mean this is the right choice for a given patient.  I recommend that patients consult with a board certified plastic surgeon with experience performing liposuction.  Sometimes it is best to see multiple surgeons to determine which one is right for you. 

Bear in mind that liposuction is surgery: Incisions are made (even if tiny), instruments are inserted into the body, and tissue is removed, some times in large amounts. There is a lot of marketing hype these days minimizing the surgical aspect of the procedure, but it should be done in a surgical facility. A board certified plastic surgeon (American Board of Plastic Surgery) will only work in properly licensed facilities so choosing an ABPS surgeon is a good place to start..

In Georgia, after internship and passage of the boards, doctors are permitted to perfom legally "medicine and surgery". So although it is legal, it is not necessarily good or even ethical. I would recommend a board certified plastic surgeon (after all,  liposuction is surgery) who performs it regularly.

Unfortunately, many doctors call themselves liposuction specialist when they are not even a plastic surgeon. A doctor might be able to learn how to do simple liposuciton with short training, outside a qualified residency program, but they would not certianly have the debth of training and knowledge to handle problems and questions adequately.

You would'nt take your car to any mechanic! you might want to also be deligent about how is going to perform surgery on you. Liposuction is a real surgery with real potential risks and complictions. Therefore, I recommend a board certified plastic surgeon, at a minimum.

I would recommend getting a Liposuction procedure only by a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. Check the American Society of Plastic Surgery (ASPS) or American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) for board certified plastic surgeons in your area. This ensures your physician has proper training, experience, and technical skills required for a safe and effective outcome. Unfortunately, there are many practitioners performing liposuction without proper credentials. Do your homework and research before agreeing to have surgery. Going to a weekend course for liposuction is not sufficient, and it gets very confusing when a "doctor" claims to be something he or she isn't.

Without any doubt the best doctor to perform liposuction is a plastic surgeon who is certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery.  Plastic surgeons certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery had had a minimum of five years, but usually six to eight years, of training after medical school during which they learn liposuction techniques on all areas of the body.  To find a surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, visit the ABPS website and locate a surgeon.   

By law any physician can perform medical treatments in their office and state licensing agencies have almost no control over what the physician does.  There are many physicians today that are discovering cosmetic medicine to be very appealing because of decreasing insurance payments.  Therefore there are a lot of non-plastic surgeons performing cosmetic procedures.  They are all going to list a bunch of credentials that sound good, but unless they have been certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgeons their credential for cosmetic procedures is NOT recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties.

The short answer is: Who do you want to do YOUR liposuction?  The person that went to a 2-5 day training course or the person that spent years in surgical training?

I know who I want to do mine.

Liposuction be performed by any licensed physician. However, not all licensed physicians are qualified to perform liposuction. Just being "board certified" does not grant one qualified to perform liposuction. Recently, a patient ask me if her Gynecologist can perform liposuction? In answering the question, I asked her if she would let a plastic surgeon deliver her baby?

Liposuction is a surgical procedure that requires training and techinical expetise. It should be performed by a surgeon with surgical residency training in liposuction. Plastic Surgeons are especially trained in the art and scinece of liposuction. A weekend course cannot replace years of formal surgical training. The best way to choose a Liposuction surgeon, is to choose a Plastic Surgeon certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery. Remember, board certified cosmetic surgeon is not the same as board certifed plastic surgeon.

It is easy to be fooled into thinking any doctor can do your liposuction, and the situation is worse now that there are people stating they are "board certified" when they are not. I have seen advertisements by gynecologists, family practicioners, radiologists, dermatologists, and other non-qualified surgeons offering low prices, no anesthesia, and "the latest technology". This takes unfair advantage of patients who do not know any better. I have colleagues in these fields who think "How hard could it be?" and begin doing it without understanding the skill and technique it takes to do these procedures well, how to avoid complications, and how to recognize and treat any complications if they do occur. There are very real risks associated with liposuction, such as perforating internal organs (such as intestines or lungs), nerve damage, blood clots, permanent visible irregularities, and others including even death. I strongly encourage you to only seek out liposuction with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon. Please note that this *ONLY* includes certification by the "American Board of Plastic Surgery". (Other "boards" by the name of American Board of Cosmetic Surgery or American Board of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery are NOT boards recognized by the American Board of Medical Specialties). Do your research and be safe. You will be happy you did.