The History of Liposuction
Even though it has been around since the 1920s, liposuction really began evolving in the late 1960s and became what we know it as in 1974, thanks to 2 Italian-American surgeons in Rome, Italy. Pioneered here in the states by a European surgeon, Dr. Leon Tchedupdjian, it wasn't until Dr. Yves-Gerard Illouz created modern liposuction in 1982; The procedure he created was the "Illouz Method", which was actually Suction Assisted Liposuction (SAL).
This method injected fluid into tissues with blunt cannulas and utilized a high-powered vacuum suction that was manual. This method of Lipolysis (transformation of fat into liquid) quickly caught on in the '80s and many doctors and surgeons were experimenting with the traditional liposuction method, creating some new body- contouring techniques of their own.
In 1985, "Tumescent Liposuction" was invented by Dr. Klein and Dr. Lillis. Liposuction could all of a sudden be performed in an office-setting with only local anesthesia via IV sedation rather than general anesthesia. The "Super Wet" technique was invented right after tumescent, because of the high volume of fluid and potential toxicity of the fluid used (lidocaine). So this lower volume 'wet' technique, Super Wet, was invented.
With modern advancements, surgeons discovered Ultrasound Assisted Liposuction (UAL) in the late 1990s. First, it was used to ignite fat removal by first liquefying the fat by using ultrasonic (heat combined with light) energy. There are still improvements being made with the UAL technique. All methods involve the cannula (a hollow tube) and aspirator (a suction device).
Keep on reading for more information, definitions and surgery as well as recovery details.
The Next Step
If you think liposuction is for you, find a plastic surgeon for a consultation. If you’d like to learn more about the procedure, be sure to read more of LipoSite’s Liposuction Guide below.