Laser Fat Removal: Everything You Need to Know

What is laser liposuction?

Laser liposuction, also known as laser lipolysis, is a laser fat reduction method suitable for individuals seeking trimmer bodies. It involves using laser energy to melt your fat tissues and subsequently suction them out of your body while simultaneously tightening the skin tissues. As such, laser liposuction upgrades the traditional liposuction method, which led to skin laxity due to fat removal. The laser liposuction removes unwanted fat cells from targeted regions of your body and encourages collagen production to tighten the skin tissues. Consequently, you achieve a well-contoured figure.

How does laser-like lipo work?

Laser-assisted liposuction is a procedure that uses heat from fiber-optic lasers to deliver targeted wavelengths into the body to melt the fat cells. Once the fat cells are melted, a tube-like device called a cannula is used to suction the fat cells out of your body. As the fat cells are removed, the blood vessels coagulate, and your body produces more collagen to tighten the skin tissues, giving you a smoother and streamlined appearance. Once the fat cells are removed, they can’t come back, but you can still gain more weight if you don’t maintain a healthy lifestyle.

How to remove fat cells from my body?

To understand how fat reduction with liposuction works, you must also understand how you gain or lose fat in general. The overall number of fat cells in our bodies remains constant throughout our lives. When we gain or lose weight, the existing fat cells expand or contract. Traditional fat loss methods, like dieting, make your fat cells contract to give you a slimmer look. However, some people have additional fat cells in targeted regions, so they always look larger than the surrounding regions. And traditional fat loss methods can’t target specific fat cells or regions.

Liposuction methods, including laser-assisted liposuction, remove the excess or unwanted fat cells from a targeted region. Once they remove the fat cells, you look slimmer and more contoured in general. You can still gain weight if you don’t maintain a healthy lifestyle, but the targeted region will always look slimmer than it did previously because it won’t have the unwanted fat cells anymore. As such, once the fat cells are suctioned out of your body, you’ll always have a more contoured appearance, but that doesn’t mean you won’t gain weight in the future. 

How much fat/weight can be removed by liposuction?

Laser liposuction is especially suitable for patients with unwanted fat tissues in targeted regions. You should consider laser liposuction if your attempts to remove fat tissues from specific regions of your body, such as your thighs, hips, or abdominals, have failed. If you’ve been working out regularly and watching your diet to no avail, then this is a great option for you. As mentioned earlier, laser liposuction removes fat cells permanently from targeted regions, so there’s a limit on the number of fat cells that can be removed safely.

Generally speaking, most surgeons remove a maximum of 5 liters of fat cells from the targeted regions in a single liposuction session. That equals around 11 pounds. Going beyond that isn’t safe for your body. As such, liposuction can’t be treated as a weight loss of bariatric surgery — you can remove limited fat cells from targeted regions for enhanced body sculpting. If you have pockets of unwanted fat in your abdomen or thighs, you can remove them, and rest assured they won’t return. But you can’t use laser liposuction for overall fat reduction if you’re overweight or obese.

What are the different techniques of liposuction?

• Tumescent Liposuction: This method involves injecting a medicated solution into the targeted region to remove the fat cells. The medication includes an anesthetic called lidocaine, epinephrine for blood vessel contracture, and an IV salt solution. The medication numbs the region and reduces the risk of swelling to extract unwanted fat cells safely.
• Super-Wet Liposuction: This method also involves injecting a special medication into the targeted region to numb the fat cells and reduce the risk of bleeding. However, the amount of fluids injected into the region is significantly lower than during tumescent liposuction.
• Ultrasound-Assisted Liposuction: This method involves using ultrasonic vibrations to turn the fat cells into liquid, facilitating their simple extraction via a cannula. Ultrasound-assisted liposuction is particularly suitable for regions with excess fat tissues, such as the male breasts and upper back.
• Laser-Assisted Liposuction: This method involves using laser energy to turn the fat cells into a liquid to be extracted via a cannula. The laser energy also stimulates collagen production in the deeper layers of your body, making your skin tissues contract in the targeted region. As such, laser-assisted liposuction gives you enhanced contouring benefits.

How many laser lipo sessions do you need?

Most patients start noticing results after the first session. However, some patients need up to 8 laser lipo sessions to see optimal results. The specific number of laser lipo sessions will depend entirely on your cosmetic goals and the doctor’s recommendations. Our cosmetic surgeon will examine your body, discuss your cosmetic goals, and recommend the ideal number of laser lipo sessions accordingly.

Schedule your SmartLipo or laser liposuction today.

Premiere Surgical Arts is one of the best cosmetic surgery centers for laser liposuction or SmartLipo in Houston, Texas. Our cosmetic surgery center is located at 2024 Richmond Ave., Houston, TX, a short distance from the Galleria shopping mall. For more information, please schedule an appointment with our cosmetic surgeon today.