Abdominoplasty with Liposuction-How Much is Safe? Raleigh, North Carolina*

This is a 50-year-old woman, mother of 2, and had a difficult time losing fat from her abdomen ,flanks and back. She underwent abdominoplasty with liposuction with removal of 17 50 cc of fat from her flanks, thighs, back and abdomen during a full abdominoplasty with diastases repair. Her postoperative recovery was uneventful. Dr. Lyle utilizes Exparel-a long-lasting numbing medicine during surgery which helps reduce immediate postoperative pain. Most patients need at least 2 weeks off from work and driving and resumption of most daily activities gradually occurs after this.. Resumption of light exercise occurs at 3-4 weeks. Many patients desire a large amount of liposuction to be done during abdominoplasty. There are limits to safety. In fact, in some states such as Florida, no more than 1000 cc of liposuction is allowed during abdominoplasty. Large volume liposuction-up to 5 L in one setting is considered the upper limit but not with abdominoplasty as the risks are higher. Most plastic surgeons believe liposuction of more of this amount either stand-alone or with abdominoplasty would be best performed in a hospital setting with an overnight stay for monitoring. The exact amount of fat that can be safely removed during abdominoplasty has not been determined. . Dr. Lyle does not remove more than 3 L and frequently most cases have less than 2 L removed. This patient was very pleased with the improvements made with her abdominoplasty with liposuction