lipo-, lip-, -lipid, -lipoid, -lipoma, -lipomatous +

A spherical particle in an aqueous medium, formed by a lipid bilayer enclosing an aqueous compartment.

1. The surgical withdrawal of excess fat from local areas under the skin by means of a small incision and vacuum suctioning.
2. A popular operation in plastic surgery which removes fat from certain places on the human body (typically abdomen, thighs, buttocks) by liquefying it and removing it through a hollow needle. In some cases, more extreme measures; such as, abdominoplasty, may be needed.

Liposuction is primarily a form of body contouring and not a weight loss method.

If you think she is obese now, you should
have seen her before she had liposuction.

Liposuction or cosmetic surgery to remove excess fatty tissue

Liposuction is a procedure that can help redesign the body by removing unwanted fat from specific areas, including the abdomen, hips, buttocks, thighs, knees, upper arms, chin, cheeks and neck. During the past decade, liposuction, which is also known as lipoplasty or "suction lipectomy", has benefited from several new refinements.

Now, a number of new techniques, including ultrasound-assisted lipoplasty (UAL), the tumescent technique, and the super-wet technique, are helping many plastic surgeons to provide selected patients with more precise results and faster recovery times.

Although no type of liposuction is a substitute for dieting and exercise, liposuction can remove stubborn areas of fat that don't respond to traditional weight-loss methods.

1. Usually a cosmetic surgical procedure in which excess subcutaneous fat is removed from a specific area of the body; such as, the thighs or abdomen, by means of suction.
2. Removal of fat by high vacuum pressure; used in body contouring.

A tendency to put on fat (to gain weight).

An increase of bodily fat in the body.

Having an affinity for fat or increasing the utilization of fat by the body tissues.

1. A vaccine prepared by suspending the microorganisms in vegetable oil. Absorption of antigenic material is thereby delayed.
2. A vaccine having a vegetable oil as a solvent.

A lipoprotein in egg yolk.

1. Acting on fat metabolism by hastening the removal of or decreasing the deposit of fat in the liver.
2. An agent that has such effects.

The presence of oil or fat in the urine.

A benign neoplasm that consists chiefly of fat cells (adipose tissue), with variable numbers of muscle cells forming portions of the neoplasm.

The surgical suctioning of fat deposits from specific parts of the body, the most common being the abdomen, buttocks, hips, thighs and knees, chin, upper arms, back, and calves after pumping several quarts, or liters, of a salt water solution underneath the skin of the area to be "sucked" out: "Tumescent liposuction involves pumping a solution beneath the skin which swells it to facilitate the suctioning out of the fat."

"Tumescent liposuctions are the most common cosmetic operations in the United States with over hundreds of thousands of such surgical operations done every year."

"The process of tumescent liposuction involves the breaking up and "sucking" out of fat from the body. This is done through a cannula (a hollow instrument) inserted subdermally (under the skin). A strong vacuum is then applied to the cannula."

In ultrasonic-assisted liposuction (UAL), the cannula is energized with ultrasonic energy, causing the fat to melt away on contact, an advantage in areas of scar tissue; such as, the male breast, back, and in areas of prior liposuction.

The disadvantages of UAL include the need for longer incisions in the skin, potential for skin or internal burns, greater cost, and longer time.