What is the intensity of the pain after liposuction?
In the hands of surgeons who are skilled in liposuction totally by local aesthesia, patients usually have less discomfort after surgery than when liposuction is done by general anesthesia. The intensity of pain immediately after liposuction is quite mild when local anesthesia is used because of the persistence of the local anesthetic effect. After liposuction totally by local anesthesia, patients rarely require any medication other than acetaminophen (Tylenol). When general anesthesia is used without sufficient lidocaine (local anesthetic) in the tumescent solution, the pain is much more intense and often requires the use of narcotic analgesics.
