The Love Handles and Liposuction: Just Made for Each Other

The love handles are a very popular region for liposuction because they can be especially difficult to ignore. The area below your ribs down to the hips is key to the overall figure of a man or woman.

The type of clothing you may prefer often doesn’t fit well. Wearing a belt, a fitted suit, swimwear, slim jeans or a pencil skirt may be uncomfortable or constricting.

What Causes Love Handles?

Fat is stored in the area of the flanks, (or love handles) due to one or more typical reasons, including: aging, pregnancy, other hormonal changes or genetic predisposition.

Since we cannot (or wouldn’t want to), change any of those things, liposuction provides an elegant solution to banish love handles. As a bonus, after liposuction for love handles, that annoying area of fat probably will never come back after liposuction.

Lipo removes fat cells for good—so you can “break up” with your love handles permanently. If you gain significant weight, however, remaining fat cells there and in other parts of the body will enlarge. Liposuction for love handles isn’t a solution for weight loss or obesity, so Bergen County residents should consider lipo only for isolated, bulging areas of the body.

Is Liposuction for the Love Handles Safe?

Liposuction has an excellent safety profile and most patients emerge happy with their results. Here are some tips to make sure you are in that group:

• Make sure the Bergen County surgical center or facility is accredited.
• Choose a surgeon who completes hundreds of the liposuction procedures annually. That’s because technique is important for safety, for an attractive result and to make sure you heal as quickly as possible after your procedure.
• Interview your prospective surgeon and see if you feel comfortable with him or her. Choose a surgeon who takes an interest in your health and your goals for the love handle procedure. Choose someone who’s able to and takes the time to clearly explain the liposuction procedure for your love handles.
• Carefully follow all of your surgeon’s instructions before and after your liposuction. Wear the compression garment for as long as recommended. Move around to encourage circulation, but don’t work out until the surgeon gives you the ok. Do not smoke as it impedes healing.
• Watch for signs of infection, which is uncommon, but includes fever. Antibiotic medication and drainage can combat this problem. Always call the office of your plastic surgeon about any symptoms that seem out of the ordinary. Other surgical risks, which will be discussed in detail before surgery, include rare blood clots. Loss of sensation in the love handle area is fairly common and may last up to a year after surgery.
• Call your surgeon anytime, even if you just had a follow-up office visit yesterday. Peace of mind is important when you’re recovering—as is catching any complication early for proper treatment.

What Love Handle Liposuction Can (and Cannot) Do

• The ideal candidate for love handle liposuction is a healthy man or woman in Bergen County with good skin elasticity and distinct pockets of excess fat, in areas like the love handles. This patient can expect a quick recovery with an improved, slimmer and fitter appearance.
• Liposuction won’t give you a “perfect” figure.
• Liposuction alone can’t improve excess skin. If you have excess skin, from previous weight loss for example, you may need a tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) instead.
• Liposuction of the love handles will not make others treat you differently.
• Liposuction will not prevent you from gaining weight again. Liposuction does permanently remove love handle fat cells. Future weight gain can cause existing fat cells in other parts of the body to enlarge, however.
• Liposuction may be inadvisable in persons with medical conditions like heart disease, circulation problems or someone who has undergone abdominal surgery near the love handles recently.

Recovery from Liposuction for Love Handles

Liposuction patients generally experience swelling, bruising and some loss of sensation in the area. These after-effects gradually subside over the next few weeks following surgery. Bruising will gradually dissipate over the next 3 weeks or so. Swelling will decrease over a period of 3 months or so.

Patients are typically sore for 1-2 weeks, with minor soreness continuing for up to a month. You may require pain medication for the first week.

Strenuous exercise is restricted during the recovery period, but gentle movement is beneficial for circulation shortly after love handle surgery, once your surgeon gives permission. Recovery times are variable depending on the amount of fat removed and other details.