Can I have Vaser 4D Sculpt if I've had liposuction before?

Many of our Vaser 4D Sculpt patients have had liposuction before but now want to benefit from the sculpting effects of this new technique. Patients who have had a liposuction before will be referred to as 'secondary patients'. They often are not aware that their previous liposuction will make any future procedures much more challenging with greater risks and more unpredictable results. So during a detailed consultation with me, I always explain the following points:

• The previous liposuction will have caused fibrosis (scar tissue) beneath the skin and sometimes this is quite dense. Dense fibrosis raises the risks of perforation and uneven results because more force is required to pass the instruments through the tissues. However, the Vaser 2.0 Lipo system, delivers ultrasound energy much more efficiently and this copes very well with fibrotic tissues.
• When trying to create a six-pack or High Definition Liposculpture, the lines may not be as obvious during the surgery due to the fibrosis. In a patient who has not had lipo before, the sculpting is more obvious because only fat is sculpted. However, in a lipo (secondary) patient, the sculpting is done in both fibrotic and fatty layers and because the fibrotic layers are more stiff, they do not necessarily reveal their new shape straight away.
• There will be much more inflammation and swelling in secondary cases because there will be generally more trauma and blood loss when compared to first timers. As such, more aftercare sessions are generally required over a longer time and results may take much longer to develop (even up to a year). The strength of the definition achieved is much more unpredictable due to the prolonged, although patients will be slimmer and there will be a hint of definition in the worst case scenario.

For a full consultation with Dr Ravi Jain in London or Harpenden, please call 01582 762877 now.

Can women have Vaser Hi Def?

Vaser Hi Def liposuction or even the more advanced Vaser 4D Sculpt, is not just for men. Women can also get sexy, hot bodies, we just recreate a different athletic look rather than a six pack. Six pack abs are a more masculine appearance so most women prefer a more streamlined abdomen with discreet diamond shape contours and shadows.

Abdomen treated only

Even though the abs are treated in a more gentle fashion than a male six pack, the female arms are treated in a more drastic fashion in that we tend to take away most of the fat over the triceps to create a less of a bingo wing with slight fashioning of the space between the deltoid and the biceps.

Vaser 4D Arms, courtesy Dr Alfredo Hoyos

Female Vaser Lipo is the most popular treatment we perform. We can also lift buttocks by moving the fat from love handles to the buttocks creating a Colombian Butt Lift. The inner and outer thighs can be refashioned in order to sculpt a complete hour glass shape.

So when you think Vaser 4D Sculpt, think Hot Sexy Bod rather than just six pack abs!

For more information on Vaser Lipo please fill out this enquiry form.

Can I have Vaser Hi Def if I've already had liposuction?

Many of my patients at Riverbanks are patients who have previously had liposuction but now want a sculptured look rather than a flat, boxed shape. Others have had liposuction elsewhere, previously, and are not happy with their results so they have come to me to try and improve them. For many of these patients the only option is Vaser Hi Def or Vaser 4D Sculpting as the only layer of fat left behind is in the superficial layer, which is not usually amenable to traditional liposuction techniques.

When treating patients who have already had liposuction, it is important to wait at least a year from the previous surgery so that the tissues have stopped healing. There is often a degree of scar tissue (fibrosis) in the remaining fatty layers and this will make the operation more challenging and also slightly more bloody  than a first time case. The amount of definition achievable can vary between individuals but is generally only slight less than with a first time case. It depends on how much fat was left behind after the previous surgery.

4D Sculpt results correcting a failed Smartlipo treatment

The healing will be much longer though and aftercare sessions at the clinic are essential in order to facilitate the healing of the treated areas. It is important to stimulate the lymphatic drainage channels and encourage new vascularity of the treated areas and this is achieved with specialised aftercare at Riverbanks. I generally advise patients who had already had a liposuction and want high definition liposculpture to book in for 10-20 aftercare sessions over 4-6 weeks.

Your results will take a bit longer to show. You will see good changes immediately but the swelling will last for a few weeks and the first signs will show at 6 weeks. We will review you at 3 months, 6 months and 12 months post op.

For more information you can call 01582 762 877 or book a consultation. 

Are the results from Vaser 4D permanent?

This is one of the most frequently asked questions I hear during my new patient clinics both in London and at my flagship clinic just outside Harpenden. Essentially, the effects of the treatment are permanent but in order to make them look natural, you stil have to make adjustments to your lifestyle. Let me explain.

Vaser 4D Sculpting uses highly advanced ultrasound-assisted-liposuction techniques to create an athletically shaped body. A large percentage of the body fat which sits just beneath the skin, is removed and if necessary transferred to other parts of the body to enhance the natural curves (eg. pectoral muscles and buttocks).

In order to enhance the appearance of certain muscle groups (such as the rectus abdominus or serratus anteriors, also known as the six pack and boxers' muscles respectively), I leave a small amount of fat over the muscles creating a bulkier appearance to the muscles.

This sculpting is PERMANENT. The fat that is left behind will expand or shrink depending on your overall nutritional status, just like any other fat. If one does put on more fat after the surgery then this tends to be distributed to areas of the body where fat cells are. Prior to surgery, this would be around your torso. However, as most of the fat cells have been permanently removed now, the fat gets stored elsewhere, such as the buttocks, thighs, face and worst of all, INTERNALLY, around your organs, such as the heart, liver and pancreas. So if one does put on a lot of visceral fat following Vaser Hi Def surgery, you may end up looking like a certain celebrity who appeared on a recent Celebrity Big Brother.

Visceral Fat

Internal fat (also know as visceral fat) is not good for you at all. It increases your risk of various life threatening diseases such as heart disease and cancers. So it is absolutely imperative that following ANY liposuction procedure, you maintain a healthy lifestyle and diet which maximises fat burning.

Many patients who I see at my clinic for lipo struggle with seeing any physical changes from their exercise and that is primarily because their diets are all wrong for their metabolism. Many people struggle to cope with a diet relatively free from bread, pasta, rice, potato and alcohol for at least 6 days of every week. However, this is what is required in many people in order to lose fat while exercising. My personal trainer James Lenaghan has coached me through my dietary & work out changes to maximise the results of my surgery as shown below:

6 months post Vaser 4D
Copyright Ravi Jain

So in summary, Vaser 4D can give you the body of your dreams. It will get you 90% of the way to achieving a natural looking athletic shape. You need to modify your diet and exercise, and then you will get 100% of the way much more quickly and with less drastic lifestyle changes than if you were to do this without surgery.

If you you would like to book a consultation at Riverbanks, please call 01582 762877

Post-Op Aftercare following Vaser 4D Sculpt

If you've researched Vaser Lipo treatments you may have come across some people mentioning the need for after care massages. To be honest, good lymphatic drainage is essential after all forms of lipo and most lymphoedema massage therapists are experienced in treating patients following cosmetic surgery. We have found those listed on MLD UK to be very good at treating our patients who travel from long distances for their regular vaser lipo.

The post-op care following Vaser 4D Sculpt though is much more specialised as it is designed to carefully nuture back the lymphatic system to full functionality following the precise body sculpting which has been carried out during the surgery. The programme has been personally designed by Colombian plastic surgeon, Dr Hoyos, the inventor of Hi def & 4D Sculpt.

Essentially the CARE protocol uses ultrasound therapy, manual lymphatic drainage and pressuretherapy to maximise your results and comfort. We recommend 20 sessions with a minimum of 10 sessions over 2 weeks.

Here is a video of one of Dr Jain's own post op sessions following his surgery: (This video does show patient discomfort and some blood)

Dr Jain is adamant that the VASER aftercare is critical to getting outstanding results and minimising unexpected complications following your surgery. So much so that he invested in his two therapists by sending them to Dr Hoyos's clinic in Colombia to receive the most intensive and up to date training available. Both of our therapists are the ONLY ones in the UK to be trained at Dr Hoyos' clinic in Bogota. By bringing these skills back to Riverbanks, we believe we have the most qualified service for bot surgical and post op care for Vaser 4D Sculpting in the UK.

How much time off work will I need after Vaser?

Typically after Vaser Liposelection the recovery is much quicker than with traditional liposuction, when like for like areas are treated. Most patients need about the first 2 days following their surgery off work as these are the days when there is the most drainage. After the 2nd day, the wounds tend to close up and the dressings can be discarded, leaving just the compression garments only needing to be worn.

Following a patient survey at Riverbanks Clinic, we identified that out of all the patients that had their Vaser on a Thursday, nearly 100% of them returned to work on the following Monday. By the Monday, only a few were still taking paracetamol as their painkiller, while the majority didn't need painkillers.

For more information about Vaser Liposelection at Riverbanks Clinic,
please call us on 01582 762877.