Liposuction

Before your surgery, preferable in your consultation, let your surgeon know if you are taking any medications, whether prescription or non-prescription. You should also tell them whether you have any allergies or medical conditions.

It’s important to stop smoking for at least 2 weeks before surgery, because this can affect how you react to the anesthetics. Smoking can also prolong the healing process post-surgery.

Also stop taking Aspirin, blood-thinning medications and vitamins and herbs for at least 2 weeks before surgery, as removing these will reduce the chance of post-operative bleeding.

Talk to your doctor about your expectations for the outcome of the surgery. They will be clear with you about what will happen during the procedure so you’ll both be on the same page and happy with the results.

During surgery, antibiotics and anesthetics will be administered intravenously to prevent infection and manage pain. So after surgery, there shouldn’t be huge amounts of pain to deal with.

The site of your incision will be dressed with bandages, to be changed and cleaned as instructed by your doctor.

When you leave the hospital, your doctor will provide you with oral antibiotic, pain relieving and anti-swelling medications to help you in the recovery process.

Your doctor will have you wear compression garments day and night during the first week after surgery. This will help the area stay firm during the healing process.

During the second and third weeks after surgery, you can remove the compression garments at night only.

You might experience some bruising, swelling, soreness or even some burning or numbing sensations for the first few weeks after surgery. These feelings should pass and you should be able to resume your normal activities by two weeks after your surgery. Hold off on strenuous activities for the first month after surgery.

Depending on the amount of fat that was removed and the individual’s tendency to bruise, it may be up to 6 months before the swelling and bruising completely subside.

While liposuction is a low-risk procedure, it’s important to be aware of the risks that are inherent in any surgical procedure.

The most common risks are infection, asymmetry, rippling of the skin, changes in pigmentation, skin injury, fluid retention and excess blood loss.

If you follow your surgeon’s instructions carefully for the post-surgery care, you will greatly reduce the risk of experiencing any of these complications.

A note about liposuction: if there are large areas to be treated, they will need to be separated into two or more sessions. It can be dangerous to do too much liposuction at a time, because it increases the risk of bleeding.