Dr. O'Neil uses the latest technology in body sculpting called Tumescent Body Sculpting. This technique, developed by a dermatologist, has been used extensively for many years on thousands of patients at The O’Neil Skin And Lipo Medical Center. With Tumescent Body Sculpting, the area to be treated is filled with a sterile fluid. The fluid is a saline solution, which contains local anesthesia medication. The procedure is meant to slenderize, reshape and contour your body. It is not a weight loss method nor a treatment for obesity.

The fat is removed with very small "micro cannulas" that are rounded with no sharp edges, unlike the larger sharp cannulas used in "old style" liposuction. The micro cannulas are connected to a vacuum (suction) machine. They are inserted into the fatty tissue through very tiny incisions. The cannula is gently moved around, very superficially under the skin, and the fatty deposits are suctioned away to improve your body contour. The fat is removed with minimal trauma and bleeding, reducing one of the major dangers of liposuction.

Because there is minimal trauma and bleeding there is also minimal bruising and soreness. Most patients return to daily activities or work in two to three days. Patients may return to limited gym and more extensive activities in a week.

The anesthesia is in the fluid, which "numbs" the area to be treated. In most cases the patient is given intravenous sedation to make the experience more pleasant.

Tumescent liposculpture is performed as an outpatient surgery. Some patients return home immediately after their procedure. Others stay one night at a local recovery center to recuperate and are easily able to drive themselves home the following morning.

Tumescent liposculpture provides excellent results especially when compared to "old style" liposuction techniques. Because the fat is expanded with fluid, a greater percentage can be removed. And because small "micro cannulas" are used we can remove the fat very close to the skin (with large cannulas this would cause "ridging" or "grooves"). This results in "skin retraction" and eliminates the need for abdominoplasty (tummy-tuck) in many cases. (See Before & After photos)

Your body has a fixed number of fat cells in any given area. When you gain weight you expand the fat cells that you have. The fat cells are permanently removed with tumescent liposuction. Should you gain weight after liposuction, it goes into the fat cells that remain in your body. The treated areas will be the last areas to pick up fat and can no longer balloon out of proportion to the surrounding areas.

An overnight stay at the Retreat facility is available. Advanced notice is required.

Arm lift (Brachioplasty) surgery has never been a very popular cosmetic procedure despite the fact that most women, over age 50, suffer from hypotrophic sagging of the tissues in the upper arm. Many have fatty problems in the area as well. The problem is the cost and the scar. Sometimes the problem can be corrected with a smaller scar in the axillary (armpit) area but more often a larger scar, running down the length of the inner upper arm, is required. This is simply unacceptable to most patients. Most would rather put up with a sagging arm than the unsightly scar.

Many patients have fatty problems in the arm as well. The posterior (backside) of the arm tends to accumulate fat, as we age, and increase in weight, especially in women. Men may think they look more masculine with larger arms but most women do not like the look of large arms, especially if they sag.

An alternative is Tumescent Liposculpture or Smart Lipo. This patient had a combination of excess fat and loose skin of her upper arm. She sought help from a Plastic Surgeon, who recommended arm lift surgery, but she did not want to deal with the large scar and the $9000 price tag was also more than she wished to spend.

We treated her at the O'Neil Skin and Lipo Medical Center with a combination of Smart Lipo laser to tighten the sagging skin, and Tumescent Liposculpture to remove the excess fat. As you can imagine, she was very happy with her results and referred several of her friends to our Lipo Center.

Tumescent Liposculpture and Smart Lipo require only small puncture wounds which leave a scar. The procedure is performed with local anesthesia and intravenous sedation. In contrast, most arm lift surgeries require general anesthesia. The cost of the procedure is 1/3 to 1/2 the cost of an arm lift surgery.

The results of this procedure should not be considered to be equal in skin tightening to a surgical arm lift. A patient can expect to improve the sagging about 10 years worth of sagging or to expect their arm tightness to be about what it was a decade earlier. The fat removal with Tumescent Liposculpture is usually superior to arm lift surgery.

This patient had a combination of Tumescent Liposculpture and Smart Lipo laser. Her procedure, at the O'Neil Skin and Lipo Medical Center, was performed with local anesthesia and a light IV sedation. She elected to have her back, waist and hips treated as well. Later, she returned to have her abdomen, inner and outer thighs sculpted as well. She feels she looks much better and more confident in her appearance.

Many patients are confused as to which procedure is "right" for them, a Tumi-tuck (abdominoplasty) or Liposurgery. The confusion arises when a patient visits several doctors and one, usually a Lipo surgeon suggests Lipo surgery, and another, usually a Plastic Surgeon, suggests abdominoplasty. It may be that both doctors are correct and that either procedure may benefit the patient.

The patient may be further confused if one of the doctors, usually the Plastic Surgeon, says that Lipo surgery would be of no benefit and that abdominoplasty is the only alternative for the patient. This is often not true.

It is a question of "relative benefit", cost, recovery, and "risk vs reward". Both procedures will remove the fat and thin the abdomen to an equal result. In some cases abdominoplasty may result in tighter skin but at what cost?

Anesthesia

Abdominoplasty, which usually requires general anesthesia and associated costs, will run 2 to 4 times the cost of an average liposculpture procedure. A patient can usually have their abdomen, hips, waist and thighs treated with liposculpture for less than abdominoplasty of the abdomen.

Risks

The risks are much less with liposculpture. Both Tumescent Liposculpture and Smart Lipo can be performed with local anesthesia and/or intravenous sedation (twilight) anesthesia. Abdominoplasty surgery usually requires general anesthesia which significantly adds to the cost and risk of the procedure.

Complications

Serious complications, such as bleeding problems, hematoma, seroma formation, infection, and pulmonary emboli, are much more common with abdominoplasty surgery. This is not to say that abdominoplasty is not a safe surgery under a competent surgeon. It is, but the relative risks should be considered when choosing a procedure.

Recovery

Abdominoplasty is a major surgery compared to liposculpture. The recovery will naturally be more arduous and prolonged with abdominoplasty surgery as compared to lipo surgery. You can expect to return to work in just a few days with Tumescent Liposculpture or Smart Lipo.

Results

The cosmetic results are also important. As mentioned earlier, liposculpture and abdominoplasty are equal in removing fat and slimming the abdomen. Abdominoplasty may have an advantage of tightening loose skin but look at these pictures.

The picture on the left is "pre-treatment". Notice how loose the skin is. Imagine how loose it should be after removal of her fat. She is 55 years old and had about 4 inches of fat in her thickest area. She was told, by another surgeon, that she needed a tumi-tuck and that liposuction would not work for her. She was treated at the O'Neil Skin and Lipo Medical Center with a combination of Tumescent Liposculpture as well as Smart Lipo. Her fat was thinned to ½ inch across her upper and lower abdomen with the Tumescent Liposculpture. A Smart Lipo laser was used to tighten her skin. Her waist, hips and inner thighs were treated as well. It is possible that abdominoplasty (tumi-tuck) might have tightened her skin a little better but she was quite pleased by this less invasive solution. She was also happy to not have a large scar across her lower abdomen, as she would have had with abdominoplasty. She was also pleased to have her abdomen, waist, hips and inner thighs reshaped, all for about ½ the cost she was quoted for abdominoplasty.

This patient above was told she needed a tumi-tuck by her Lipo Surgeon and by several Plastic Surgeons. She refused abdominoplasty because of the scar and cost. She was treated at the O'Neil Skin and Lipo Medical Center with a combination of Smart Lipo laser and Tumescent Liposculpture, and her results were excellent. She knew she could get more skin tightening with abdominoplasty, but chose the less invasive alternative and was very pleased with her results. Her hips, waist, and back are sculpted at the same time, all for much less than her abdominoplasty cost quotes.

Summary

In summarization, patients need not always choose the most dramatic procedures. Other factors such as risks, cost, scars and recovery time must be considered when choosing the appropriate procedure. And after reviewing all the variables it is still your choice.