Laser Assisted Liposuction (LAL)
Laser Diodo 980nm
Liposuction has become increasingly popular over the last decade and now stands among the most popular body-sculpting procedures. This increasing popularity is associated with the evolution of techniques and equipment for fat removal and body reshaping. Besides traditional suction-assisted lipoplasty, other options include ultrasound-assisted and external ultrasound-assisted liposuction, power-assisted liposuction, and laser lipolysis. Efforts in the search for alternatives and new tools primarily seek to reduce downtime, decrease operator fatigue, reduce bleeding, and promote skin contraction.
Smart Liposuction is a laser lipolysis procedure that utilizes laser technologies for liposuction and body sculpting. Laser lipo is becoming more and more popular as a minimally invasive surgical procedure to enhance body contour that far surpasses traditional liposuction in terms of safety and aesthetic outcomes in part because of its ability to spur collagen production along with skin tightening in treated areas of the body.
Though Smart Lipo is not a way to lose weight, it is an excellent way to target fat deposits on the body that are resistant to diets and exercise. The amount of fat that can be removed during a body contour procedure like Smart Lipo is limited, but Smart Liposuction results are striking nonetheless. As an alternative to traditional liposuction methods this new liposuction technique is designed to cause fat reduction in discreet, targeted areas of the body with minimal invasiveness.
What are the advantages of laser treatment with the Smartlipo laser?
TA lipo procedure that makes use of a Smartlipo laser allows the plastic surgeon to be more precise in his or her fat removal efforts. The Smartlipo laser can be aimed at fat cells to melt them so that they can easily be removed from the body through a tiny cannula. Liquefied fat is easier to suction out of the body than fat cells that have not been liquefied. One of the biggest advantages of Smart Lipo is that fat can be removed through a smaller cannula than what’s used in traditional lipo procedures. A smaller cannula means smaller incisions which means less chance of scarring.
Laser History
Widely used in Europe and Latin America, laser lipolysis (also called laser lipoplasty) was introduced in North America in 1994 [1, 2]. Laser lipolysis with a pulsed 1064-nm Nd:YAG laser has proven to be safe and effective. After adequate infiltration of an anesthetic solution, a flexible optical fiber is inserted via a small-caliber cannula into the fat tissue. Transillumination from a red aiming beam makes the 1-mm cannula easy to see. Laser energy is transmitted to and absorbed by the adipocytes, leading to volume expansion and rupture [3]. Histologic analyses of the effects of pulsed Nd:YAG lasers on human fat tissue have shown areas of reversible cellular damage (tumefaction), irreversible tissue damage (lysis), and a reduction in bleeding when compared to conventional liposuction.
The mechanisms leading to laser lipolysis are temperature-dependent. First, at low energy and consequently low temperature, only tumefaction of adipocytes is observed [4]. As carried out by Goldman [3] on tissues removed immediately after the procedure, at higher energy levels histologic assessment showed adipocytic membrane rupture as well as coagulation of small vessels in the fatty tissue [5].
More importantly, the incidence of tumefaction and lysis varies proportionally to the intensity of energy accumulated in the target. Badin et al. [4] showed that conventional liposuction produces less reversible damage (tumefaction) than laser lipolysis with 1000 J of energy. At energy levels ranging from 1000 J up to 12,000 J, Kim and Geronemus observed a direct correlation between energy levels and volume reduction. Typically, 3000 J leads to a 5-cm3 reduction in fat volume and a 20-cm3 volume reduction is obtained with 12,000 J. These clinical observations have been confirmed through mathematical modeling of laser lipolysis [6].