Smartlipo - Shortcut To That Bikini Body

As this past weekend in the Bay Area proved, the sunshine (and the heat)are not going anywhere anytime soon. It’s probably safe to assume July will be even better, brighter and warmer. With the sun being much more a part of daily life our thoughts turn to summer activities, like the beach and bathing suits. If you aren’t quite at a point with your body that sporting a bikini sounds at all like a fun idea, there is an option available to you that provides a safe, affordable shortcut to a beach body you’d want to show off: SmartLipo liposuction.

Traditional liposuction comes with a reputation of being somewhat traumatic to the body and therefore sometimes a pain, literally, to recover from. At our GLOW Surgical Arts offices in Redwood City, our cosmetic surgeons utilize two newer, less invasive, techniques of liposuction -- power assisted lipo (PALS) and laser assisted lipo (SmartLipo). For the purposes of this blog, we’re focusing on the latter, but our cosmetic surgeons will be happy to discuss all of your liposuction options with you during your pre-procedure consultation.

SmartLipo is a relatively new technique, having only been available in the U.S. since 2006. There are several reasons the technique is growing quickly in popularity and why it’s one of the techniques we have chosen to make available to patients at GLOW. Among them:

Less invasive. The entire procedure is done with just tumescent anesthesia, so there’s no “going under” for the patient. In fact, the patient is kept updated by the cosmetic surgeon during the procedure. SmartLipo is done with a very small cannula (a tube approximately 1.0 mm to 2.0 mm in diameter) that is inserted into the skin. The cannula contains the SmartLipo laser fiber, and it is moved back and forth in the treatment area. Laser energy is delivered directly to the fat cells, which causes them to rupture and liquify.

How it works. In addition to the fat cells being destroyed by the laser energy, the laser also interacts with the dermis, which causes collagen shrinkage. With traditional lipo, this interaction doesn’t take place and can result in loose, saggy skin in the treatment area. With the additional laser interaction, SmartLipo typically avoids that effect. The SmartLipo laser also causes small blood vessels to coagulate, which means less bleeding, swelling, and bruising than a traditional liposuction procedure.

Quicker recovery. Not only is there less bleeding, swelling, and bruising with SmartLipo than traditional lipo, but because there is no “going under,” SmartLipo is very safe. At GLOW, we tell patients to expect about an hour long procedure for each targeted area. For example, should you and your cosmetic surgeon decide to target your lower abdomen, the procedure would take about an hour. That is why the technique has earned the nickname, “Lunch Hour Lipo.” The name is a little misleading, of course. While the procedure could easily be done during a lunch hour, we wouldn’t recommend going directly back to the office from our surgical offices. A few days of rest are a good idea, and strenuous exercise should be avoided for about two weeks post procedure. So, while a return to work directly after the procedure isn’t a good idea, you will be able to go back to work within days.

You could also very quickly sport that swimsuit and do a little showing off at the beach. You should be able to see positive results within a few days after the procedure, and hanging out on the beach isn’t a strenuous exercise. Feel free to start showing off whenever you feel like it -- usually within a couple of weeks patients are ready to do just that. We ask patients to wear a compression garment over the treated area of their body for about two weeks, so once that comes off... if the beach beckons, the beach beckons!

Is SmartLipo for you? We can discuss in detail whether or not you’re a good fit, and what kind of results you can expect during a pre SmartLipo body sculpting consultation at our Redwood City surgical offices. In general, if you’re in good health and have an area of your body that doesn’t seem to respond to diet and exercise, SmartLipo is an option. There is no need to remain frustrated about not quite being able to attain the beach body you had hoped to have ready for the summertime. SmartLipo is safe, the procedure is quick, you can be back to work within a couple of days, and yes, in a bathing suit on the beach within a couple of weeks. The sun isn’t going anywhere for a while, and SmartLipo just might be the answer to making sure you’ve got the body to fully enjoy it!

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