Am I A Good Candidate For Liposuction Of My Abdomen, Flanks and Thighs?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I have sent in photos to see if I am a good candidate for liposuction. My areas of concern are my stomach, thighs, and buttocks. Please help!!!

A: Thank you for your inquiry and sending your pictures. While you do have fat that can be removed by liposuction in the abdomen, flanks and thighs (liposuction of the buttocks is almost never done), the quality of the skin in these areas is an issue. The aesthetic success of liposuction depends on the overlying skin’s ability to shrink down and be smooth once the fat underneath it is reduced. When the skin has an irregular contour and is loose/lax this is a setup for significant postoperative contour irregularities that would be greater than what existed before surgery.

As a general rule aesthetic plastic surgery is often about ‘trading out one problem for another’. You just have to be sure the problem you are acquiring is one you like better than the one you currently have. In some cases these tradeoffs are not that significant. In your case that tradeoff is much more suspect….is a reduced fullness with increased skin irregularities better?

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana