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What is Tumescent Liposuction?
Tumescent
liposuction is now recognized world wide as the technique
permitting the greatest safety, the most rapid recovery,
the least pain and the best aesthetic results. Before
and after tumescent liposuction photos
Tumescent
liposuction is also the only technique that, in
the hands of an expert surgeon, permits liposuction totally by local anesthesia, avoiding the dangers of
general anesthesia, IV sedation and narcotic analgesics.
There are surgeons who prefer
to simultaneously use general anesthesia and tumescent
liposuction. Some surgeons rely on general anesthesia
because they do not have the skill to achieve complete
anesthesia with tumescent liposuction. Others recommend
general anesthesia just because they prefer patients
to be unconscious. Still others use general anesthesia
because it permits liposuction to be completed more
rapidly.
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However, the use of general anesthesia
ought not to be based on what is most convenient for the surgeon,
but rather what is best for the patient. Ultimately, the patient
should choose the type of anesthesia based on all the information
at his or her disposal.
Development of Tumescent Liposuction
Although liposuction
is a relatively new form of cosmetic surgery, there
have been several recent improvements in the technique.
One of the most significant improvements has been the
introduction of tumescent liposuction, developed by
Jeffrey A. Klein, M.D. in 1985. It permits liposuction
totally by local anesthesia instead of general anesthesia.
This technique is now considered the safest form of
liposuction for removing very large amounts of fat because
there is virtually no blood loss. Not only has tumescent
liposuction proven to be safer than the standard technique
using general anesthesia but it also has proven to be
less painful, has minimized post operative recovery
time, and has produced optimal cosmetic results.
Tumescent liposuction was first
presented by Dr. Klein in 1986 at the Second World Congress
of Liposuction
Surgery in Philadelphia. His article that first
described the technique appeared in the American Journal
of Cosmetic Surgery in 1987.
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Liposuction Totally By Local Anesthesia
The word tumescent means swollen
and firm. Tumescent liposuction uses large volumes of
a dilute solution of lidocaine, a local anesthetic,
in combination with the vasoconstrictive drug epinephrine,
which temporarily shrinks capillaries.
Local anesthesia used in tumescent
liposuction for liposuction is so effective that
patients no longer need intravenous sedatives, narcotic
analgesics, or general anesthesia. Over the years, numerous
patients who previously had liposuction with general
anesthesia have had second treatments with tumescent
liposuction. Virtually every one of these patients has
found tumescent liposuction to be less painful, to provide
better results and to result in more rapid healing and
recovery.
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Virtually No Blood Loss
As a result of the widespread capillary
constriction caused by the epinephrine in the anesthetic solution,
there is minimal bleeding during and after surgery. This is
a major improvement in the liposuction technique compared
to older methods that simply use general anesthesia.
Dr. Klein recently completed a study
of large volume liposuction of 112 patients, each of whom
had between 1,500 ml to 3,400ml (1.5 quarts to nearly 1 gallon)
of fat removed using tumescent
liposuction. None of these
patients required a blood transfusion. In fact, the average
patient lost approximately three teaspoons (15 ml) of blood.
Tumescent liposuction is so effective at minimizing blood
loss that the majority of patients with large volume liposuction
lose less blood during the surgery than they do at the time
of their routine pre-operative laboratory studies.
The Scottsdale Cosmetic Health Insitute services the Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona area. Our facility is not only
famous for Mesotherapy treatments,
but is also renowned for its cutting edge medical and cosmetic
procedures. For more information on
liposuction please contact
us.
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