The popularity of liposuction cannot be denied. It is one of the most commonly performed surgical body sculpting procedures. It is popular because it safely, effectively and quickly produces tangible results. More cosmetic professionals are now opting to perform this procedure in conjunction with other procedures.
Just How Popular Is Liposuction?
The statistics reveal the popularity of this procedure. It is estimated that in 2015 alone, more than 390,000 procedures were performed. This number is a 124 percent increase in the number of procedures performed since 1997, and it represents a 16 percent increase over the 2014 calendar year. And this is only in North America. On a worldwide scale, liposuction is number two when it comes to surgical body sculpting procedures, with more than 1,394,000 procedures performed around the world in 2015.
Combining Liposuction with Other Procedures
One of the reasons why this procedure has grown in popularity is because it is often performed in conjunction with other procedures. Some of these procedures are relatively simple, while others are complicated. Liposuction and fat grafting, for example, go hand-in-hand, as the cosmetic professional will need to acquire donor fat from one part of the body via liposuction to graft it onto another part of the body.
Combining liposuction with other procedures is something that is widely accepted by the medical community and is extremely popular. That being said, very little research has been done on the subject of what types of risks can come with it. More studies need to be done with the goal of creating generalized conclusions that can then be used to educate patients on the potential risk of combining liposuction with other procedures.
The Results of Existing Studies
CosmetAssure, an insurance program designed to cover the cost of any complications that may arise during cosmetic surgery, performed a study with the goal of identifying whether a patient experienced increased risk when combining liposuction with another cosmetic procedure.
During the study, the effects that the procedure by itself had on a patient was examined. These results were then compared with other patients who had liposuction along with a tummy tuck and a breast augmentation, revision or reduction. Other treatments that were paired with liposuction included a butt lift, a thigh lift and a few others.
During the procedure, risk factors like age, whether the patient smoked, diseases that they had and the type of facility where the procedure was performed were all taken into consideration.
The study went from May 2008 to May 2013. During that time, more than 183,000 procedures were performed on over 129,000 patients. During the course of the study, 759 patients had major complications. When a patient had liposuction as their sole procedure, they had a complication rate of 0.7 percent. However, when it was combined with another surgical procedure, the complication rate rose to 3% – 5%. This means that while combining these procedures is still widely safe, it poses a notably higher risk than liposuction on its own.
CosmetAssure gives you peace of mind by covering the cost of a complication in the unlikely event that one occurs during cosmetic surgery. We are located in Birmingham, AL and help patients all over the country by taking away the financial burden of treating a complication. Contact us today to learn more and find a participating plastic surgeon near you.