Abdominoplasty – Also known as a tummy tuck, this is a surgical procedure where skin is cut from hip bone to hip bone (ASIS) to remove fatty tissue and access skin that has been overstretched and scarred. It sometimes includes tightening muscles of the abdominal wall. NB: Abdominoplasty is not a ‘liposuction’ term; however, liposuction is an alternative to abdominoplasty for many individuals.

Adipose tissue – Another name for fat tissue.

Cannula – A thin, hollow tube inserted into either a body part or vein to administer medication, insert a surgical instrument or drain fluid. During liposuction procedures, a cannula is inserted to create tunnels into the fat tissue and then loosen excess fat.

Epinephrine – Also known as adrenaline, it is a medication and hormone secreted from the adrenals. In liposuction procedures, epinephrine is added to the tumescent anaesthesia solution as it constricts blood vessels, minimising bleeding.

General anaesthesia – Also known as a GA, or general anaesthetic, it refers to the drugs and/or gases used during an operation to alter consciousness and render you free from pain. Most surgeons, including Dr Feldman, do not use general anaesthesia for liposuction. Instead, they prefer to use local anaesthesia, which offers far more benefits to the patient.

Haematoma – Localised bleeding outside of blood vessels, beneath the skin, usually due to trauma from injury or surgery. Sometimes it may involve blood continuing to seep from broken capillaries. If liposuction is performed by an inexperienced surgeon, trauma to the tissues can cause excess bleeding, leading to a haematoma. Additionally, to avoid haematomas, patients should abstain from smoking are taking medication such as aspirin, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and various medications and herbs before the surgical procedure.

Intravenous sedation – Aka IV sedation or twilight sedation – it involves the use of sedatives to help you relax, administered via intravenous injection.

Liposuction – Also known as lipoplasty, liposuction, lipo, tumescent liposuction and suction lipectomy, it is the process of using cannulas to suck or vacuum out fat from beneath the skin’s surface to reduce the amount of fat tissue in an area or areas of the body.

Local anaesthesia – A drug administered directly into the body to relieve the pain. In liposuction surgery, local anaesthesia is mixed in with the tumescent anaesthesia solution.

Registered day procedure centre – In simple terms, a registered day procedure centre is a surgery designed specifically for patients to receive surgical procedures on the day without any overnight stay. Registered day procedure centres must adhere to strict legislative requirements for the health and safety of patients.

“A registered day procedure centre is a private health service establishment where persons are provided with health services of a prescribed kind and where persons to whom treatment of that kind. It provided a reasonably expected to be admitted and discharged on the same date.” – Health.Vic

Dr Feldman performs all her liposuction procedures at her registered day procedure, South Yarra Day surgery, located in South Yarra, Melbourne. For added assurance, the day surgery is accredited by Global-Mark for the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards.

Sutures – These are stitchers used by surgeons to hold either skin or tissue together. A benefit of liposuction is that there is virtually no cutting – only small puncture marks from the cannulas which, depending on their size, may be sutured together after the procedure.

Saline – A salt water solution (sodium chloride in water). When used in tumescent liposuction, the saline solution is mixed with very small amount of epinephrine and Lignocaine to form tumescent anaesthesia.

Tumescent liposuction – The most commonly used form of liposuction today, involving tumescent fluid being pumped into the tissues before liposuction to minimise bleeding, swelling, hasten fat removal and decrease recovery time.

Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding, you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner. To discover more about the liposuction procedure,  results and considerations, see our main liposuction page here. Read more about surgical risks here.