I saw two patients today who came in after they had smart lipo done by other doctors. TWO PATIENTS. They both were upset with their bellies. They had the same story:
“I had fat on my belly. I saw Dr. X and he promised me he could remove the fat and that my skin would tighten up. Look at my belly now!” They come to me to fix their belly skin.
Urg.
I am the one stuck with telling these lovely women I cannot help them. These women are both fair skinned women, late 40s early 50s. One had a child, one had not. The issue with liposuction is it relies on the skin to shrink wrap to the smaller size. If you have poor skin tone, cellulite dimply stuff, loose or hanging skin BEFORE your fat removal, your skin will not tighten up like you want it to.
Both of the doctors doing the smart lipo are not surgeons. I don’t intend to single out smart lipo. All the laser liposuction companies target non surgeons to do liposuction. Insurance reimbursements are poor and tough to collect, so many internal medicine, Ob Gyne, and family practice doctors look for other ways to make a living. This causes doctors to go outside of their specialty, what they were trained to do in residency.
The problem with doctors going outside of their specialty, is they don’t know when a salesman is selling them a rainbow. When a laser liposuction company shows photos of great results and says “laser liposuction tightens the skin! This is a liposuction tummy tuck!” These doctors don’t know not to believe them.
AND these doctors can’t do tummy tucks. Only board certified plastic surgeons do tummy tucks. So when you get their opinion, they will likely recommend liposuction to you. It’s the old “when you are a hammer, the whole world is a nail.”
So. My advice?
Get at least two opinions before doing abdominal liposuction. MAKE SURE ONE OF THOSE OPINIONS IS FROM A BOARD CERTIFIED PLASTIC SURGEON. Go to the plasticsurgery.org site to get a list in your area, or ask your doctor “are you board certified? BY WHAT BOARD?” I have had people ask to see my board certification diploma on my wall. I am thrilled they know to ask the right questions, and I am happy to bring it out for them to see.
Tummy tuck versus abdominal liposuction is a battle. For women past age 40, with fair skin, stretch marks, post baby, etc, the choice is difficult. There are pros and cons to either. Don’t be fooled by the “laser” ” new technology” “no downtime!” “no pain!” “lipotummy tuck” and flashy ads and offices. There is no magic answer. Trust me, as a female mother of 3, if I find the magic answer I will shout and blog from all the mountaintops.
The issue for these women is they were “promised” their skin would be tight after the liposuction. I don’t know the doctors. I hope these doctors were honest in their evaluation and didn’t purposefully mislead these women just to make a buck. But this issue of laser liposuction leaving bellies a mess is one I am seeing over and over again, even here in Palo Alto, the land of hyper educated women.
Don’t come to me after someone does smart lipo and leaves your belly a mess. Come to me before, at least for a second opinion, so you know what you are getting into.