Tigh Liposuction:
Fatty deposits on the inner and outer thighs are especially resistant to diet and exercise. Many patients become discouraged at having lost unwanted pounds without seeing a significant change in the lower body. The overall proportions of the body may be unbalanced. In these cases, liposuction can successfully trim the excess fat in the thighs to achieve a more attractive balance and symmetry to the body. In fact, this is the most common area of the body for liposuction.
Who is it most suitable for?
Liposuction is most suitable for patients of a relatively normal weight who have pockets of excess fat on their thighs. The firmer and more elastic the skin, the better the results. It will not get rid of cellulite. Most of us (unless obese) have a set number of fat cells that expand and contract depending on our diets and activity levels. Liposuction gets rid of some fat cells for good, leaving less to expand and contract and so reducing fat levels permanently
How is thigh liposuction performed?
Before surgery, the surgeon will mark the precise areas of the body where the fat is to be removed. An intravenous (IV) line will be inserted in a vein in your arm to make sure the fluid level in your body remains in balance. If you are not undergoing general anesthesia, you may be given a sedative for relaxation.
During the procedure, the surgeon makes a tiny incision in the skin, typically in or near the buttock crease or at the site of a previous scar, and inserts a thin tube called a cannula into the fatty area. The cannula is used to break up the fat deposits and sculpt the area to the desired proportions. The unwanted fat is removed with a high pressure vacuum, leaving the skin, muscles, nerves, and blood vessels intact.
Are there any risks?
Some people may experience stretchmarks or loose skin if the skin contraction is not smooth over the removed fat, either because too much fat has been removed or if the skin has lost its elasticity due to over-stretching or age. Medical complications are infrequent but cosmetic complications include patchy skin and uneven pigmentation. In general, the more fat that's removed, the greater the risk
What can I expect afterward?
For a day or two, you can expect to feel tired, as though your body has been through a workout – and it has! Your legs will be stiff and store, and you may experience some pain, burning, swelling, bleeding or temporary numbness. Your doctor can prescribe medication to relieve this initial discomfort.
Sometimes a small drainage tube is inserted under the skin to drain excess fluid. Your doctor may prescribe an antibiotic ointment to prevent infection at the incision sites. Your stitches will be removed in a week to 10 days, unless they dissolve on their own.
You will be fitted with a tight compression garment to be worn for up to six weeks after your surgery. This specially designed garment will help reduce pain and swelling, and help your body settle into its new shape.
What is the recovery period like?
Most of the bruising and swelling should subside within three weeks. To speed the healing process your surgeon will probably tell you to begin light activity as soon as possible.
You should be able to return to work within a few days if your work is fairly sedentary. You should avoid strenuous activities for several weeks as your body heals, but within 4 to 6 weeks you should be able to resume all normal activities. It’s important to continue wearing the compression garment, which should be easily hidden under your clothing, until your doctor tells you that it is no longer necessary.
You should see visible results of your surgery within two or three weeks, but the full effects may not be evident for six months to a year. The more fat that you had removed, the longer it will take to achieve optimal results, because the skin has to adapt to a more radical change in shape.
Tigh Lift:
While excess fat deposits are the major component of body contour problems, skin laxity and skin contour irregularities (cellulite) are significant problems in many women There are two basic methods to deal with body contour deformities; liposuction and excision lifts. Liposuction deals with localized fat deposits and excisional lifts deal with significant laxity of the skin and soft tissue.
Who is the good candidate ?
Thigh lifting is indicated in patients with thigh contour deformities and significant skin laxity. This deformity may appear after significant weight loss or extensive liposuction or badly treated skin by repeated weight fluctuations. As laxity of skin and cellulite will occur in all women with the normal aging process. So, liposuction in an aged patient most probably will be combined with lifting .
What is thigh lift ?
It is an operation by which we tighten the lax skin of the thigh by excising the excess skin and putting the incisions as possible as we can in skin creases to maximize the aesthetic results .
Where are the incisions placed ?
Lifting of the inner thigh has its incision along the inner lower edges of the underwear. Lifting of the outer thigh has its incisions along the upper edge of the underwear. This incision is continuous with the tummy tuck incision from the front as most patients with significant skin laxity of the thigh have actually a total lower body ptosis .
Some patients need only inner thigh lifting because the inner thigh is more exposed to laxity than the outer thigh due to its thinner skin quality .
When can I go back to work ?
Hospitalization for 2 days and limited physical activity for 3 weeks, are recommended. However, ambulation is encouraged as early as possible .
Suction drains will be removed when discharge fluid decreases. This may take 1-7 days. Sutures will be removed in 2 weeks but holding strips may last longer .
A special compression garment must be applied continuously for at least a month .
What are possible complications ?
Blood collection and infection are rare complications which can be controlled by drainage and antibiotics. Skin edges necrosis now became also a rare complication after good understanding of skin anatomy and blood supply of different skin flaps .
