Liposculpture is for improving body shape, not for weight loss. The ideal candidate has pockets of stubborn fat, commonly in the love handles, saddle bags, inner thighs and upper arm areas, but is otherwise generally slim all over.

Some people think that they can have poor lifestyle habits (eat too much, no exercise, etc) and just use liposuction to get rid of the excess fat. However, once all the fat in the skin has been removed, the fat gets stored around the internal organs, and this is very dangerous for health, increasing the risks of metabolic disease exponentially. And liposuction cannot be used to treat internal fat.

The ideal candidate should not be overweight, and just have stubborn pockets of fat that will not go despite eating properly and exercising. Once the fat is removed through liposculpture, the person should then maintain this shape for life.

Liposculpture can also be used to remove bra bulges and even reduce male breasts (gynaecomastia).

Done well, it allows clothes to fit better, and often has positive emotional benefits.

However, some people with body dysmorphic disorder perceive themselves as fat, and will demand liposculpture too. These candidates should be discouraged by ethical surgeons.

Slim people will bulging lower tummies may not be fat. Poor muscle tone often leads to abdominal bulging.

Ideally, you should seek out a few doctors before deciding if you want to proceed with liposculpture surgery. They can then best advise if you are a good candidate and whether your desired results are realistic.

As with all surgical procedures, liposculpture surgery involves some risk. Although your results are likely to be great, you must be prepared that not everything may go to plan, and some serious complications may occur. So do your homework before rushing into it!

Potential Problems after Liposculpture include:

1. Skin dimpling and unevenness. This is particularly with traditional liposuction, where the fat is effectively cored out. If done too superficially, a smooth effect may not be seen.

2. Loose Skin. Skin contractility is of particular concern in tummy and arm liposculpture. If there is inadequate elasticity, the skin will not tighten adequately, resulting in swinging bye bye arms or a hanging apron in the tummy area.

3. Poor Results. As the operation is done with you lying down, the fat position may not correspond to where it lies when you are upright. So although the contours look great on the operating table, it may not be perfect in other body positions. A surgeon’s experience is key here.

4. Abnormal Fat Collections. Should you put on weight in future, the operated areas are less likely to increase in size, and strange pockets of fat may enlarge instead.

5. Local Anaesthetic Toxicity can occur hours after surgery and cause fitting and/or heart rhythm abnormalities.

6. Infection and subsequent scarring.

7. Death. No one ever likes to talk about deaths associated with cosmetic surgery, but liposuction/liposculpture has a small, but finite risk associated with it, from organ puncture, fat embolism, bleeding.