What exactly happens during a liposuction procedure?
Dr. Virginia first numbs the skin with a local anesthetic. Once the skin has lost its sensation, she makes a series of small incisions about 1/8 to 1/4 inch in size, or about 3 to 6 mm. The entire area to be liposuctioned is then flooded with the wetting solution, which desensitizes it even further. The doctor then inserts the cannula into each incision and moves it back and forth in a radiating pattern around the incision point suctioning the fat. She then moves from incision to incision until all the area to be treated has been suctioned. The length of time of the liposuction operation depends on the amount of fat to be removed and the size of the areas to be treated, taking from 30 minutes to 4 hours.
