Last year I had the lap band put in. I have recently lost all my weight and am down to 135lbs however I still have fat around my mid section that I want GONE. I am interested in SmartLipo as its not as invasive and costly, however I would like to know if this would interfere with my lap band or lap band port? Does anyone know of a good…great doctor that offers the service.

P.S. I am open to (in fact I would prefer) a doctor abroad ei, Mexico, costa rica etc. and a travel buddy I can go with.

Thanks!

Ladeda

I'll wait with baited breath for the answers too - I'm skinny above the waist and below the upper thigh, but that section in between still has residual fat that simply will not budge, no matter what I do. There's a little bit of excess skin involved but there's fat under that skin.

it drives me insane. I've had a body BLITZ over the last 8 weeks, what's happened? My boobs have shrunk to a C cup from a D! D'oh.

If I were to lose the 10 to 15 lb (and my body does NOT want to let go of a pound, I've been trying to do this for a year) that I estimate it would take, in reality, what will happen is that I will have no boobs left and my face will look skeletal. I'm a perfect lipo candidate.

BUT - I can guarantee my port would look pretty darn obvious, it would stick out like a sore thumb. Its already highly visible. Particularly since I"m pretty sure I have a six pack under there, my abs are super hard and flat.

Does anyone want to donate to my fund, lol?

there was a thread a while back on smartlipo and i posted the same info. i wouldn't touch it w/a 10ft poll.

there were several doctors & firms doing it in dallas tx - which have been shut down and class action lawsuits in place.

my BF is part of the suit - she was 41 at the time, 138lbs - 6 kids...had belly skin/fat she wanted what the gym didn't. she now has lumpy bumps the size of dimes all across her stomach - she is a mess about it. cause you think after 6 kids - 138lbs....your good to go. she is now disfigured, and it really is gross the hardened lumps under the skin.

she paid for 10 sessions and they shut down after her 3rd time - she's out the cash up front, plus her stomach looking 10 times worse than her loose skin after having many kids.

i''m all for lipo - but not this version of it.

Oh, is smart lipo the injection thing?

No, I wouldnt do that. Real lipo is what I'm talking about.

Oh, is smart lipo the injection thing?

No, I wouldnt do that. Real lipo is what I'm talking about.

it's laser lipo on top of injected areas.

the injection sites are what created these hardened lumps - i say dime size.

i'd go traditional lipo myself....

WOW that is so funny that you ask because I just had a consultation today for the same thing. There should be no interference as far as the band goes. I am having my arms, abdomen, and flanks (upper hip area) done and it is 8500. I am getting the arms done on Feb 11th and the rest on Feb 20th. I am so excited I could just scream because these areas are just not moving with diet and exercise. If you have any questions just let me know.

Thats horrible what happened to your friend!!! I assumed because it was less invasive it would be better/safer than regular lipo. I really am worried about my port as well, will they move it or what? I've come this far, all I want is to get rid of this FATTTTTT!!!

I know what you guys are talkinga bout, that is the lipodissolve and yes there are those exact problems with that. I looked into that as well. With lipodissolve it takes several treatments for you to get any progress and it can form hard lumpy masses (scar tissue) under the skin. The smart lipo is like a mini lipo that is done in his office and it is just done once. They make small incisions, insert the very tiny canula then they inject some sort of fat dissolving stuff and saline and then it is sucked out. It is done in like an hour and then I go home. From what I read on it it is very effective. I sure hope so!

I know what you guys are talkinga bout, that is the lipodissolve and yes there are those exact problems with that. I looked into that as well. With lipodissolve it takes several treatments for you to get any progress and it can form hard lumpy masses (scar tissue) under the skin. The smart lipo is like a mini lipo that is done in his office and it is just done once. They make small incisions, insert the very tiny canula then they inject some sort of fat dissolving stuff and saline and then it is sucked out. It is done in like an hour and then I go home. From what I read on it it is very effective. I sure hope so!

yes jaymie - lipodissolve!

i'd be interested in your results - please post! i got lipo on the brain for the future, but swore i'd go traditional only.

all the best to you!!!

SmartLipo, or for that matter any form of lipo, is great for removing fat but does not tighten the skin much.

My extensive experience with weight loss patients confirms that they mainly have excess skin, not so much fat. So I feel there is a limited role for lipo alone.

These days, most practitioners follow smartlipo with regular old lipo because if the fat is not physically removed there is prolonged swelling. My question is why use the laser then ?

A lot of feedback on smartlipo on some other boards:

Liposuction Message Boards - DISAPPOINTED IN SMART/VASER LIPO - Plastic Surgery, Cosmetic, Forums, Chats

As for the band...your surgeon needs to know where the port and tubing is so as not to disturb it during the procedure.

Best wishes,

John LoMonaco, M.D., F.A.C.S.

Plastic Surgery

Houston, Texas

www.DrLoMonaco.com

www.BodyLiftHouston.com

Dr JLo, is lipo actually likely to WORSEN loose skin?

I really was extremely lucky, not *much* loose skin at all. I know lipo wont get rid of it, but I'd still like the fat underneath it gone. But I'm afraid then my teeny tiny skin issue will look more noticeable.

My lapband dr's does lipo for $2000.00 a body part. The patients seem to be satisfied. It is done in the office and 1-2 days you can go back to wk. I think that I'm just too old to have tummy tuck so I'm interested in the lipo especially with the short down time. Please Jaymie let us know how things go for you.

These days, most practitioners follow smartlipo with regular old lipo because if the fat is not physically removed there is prolonged swelling. My question is why use the laser then ?

i never understood that?

i don't have excess skin issues - just the blips on the side of the thighs that no running or squats have taken care of. that is what i want gone - but can live with it....still on the fence.

Skin texture changes and irregularity are the most common cosmetic complication of lipo, and weight loss patients will be at higher risk as their skin has been stretched and damaged by the obesity and weight gain-loss cycles. Plusa there is just a whole lot more of the skin !

Not to sound crass or disrespectful but

My lapband dr's does lipo

just doesn't sound right.

But if you have seen before and after photos of other patients who look like you do, and you like the results then go for it. My recommendation has always been to seek out a board-certified PS for a PS procedure as that is the only way you can be sure your doc has had formal training on the technique.

Well I had my smartlipo yesterday and I cannot tell you how incredible happy I am already with the results. My arms are still swollen and probably will be for awhile because of all the solution that was pumped into them but I already see a change. I was going to post pics and the office was going to give me my befores but I forgot to get them. I will get them at my followup and then post a 10 day beofre and after. The following is an account of what happened.

They first numbed each area with a needle. These areas are where they were going to make very small incisions. These are where they insert the tubing and so forth. There are four very small incisions on each arm. After in numbed (which was very fast) they took a large syringe with a lidocaine/saline solution in it. They went to each incision (Which I will call port) and infiltrated the arm. They put an entire litre of Fluid in each arm. If anything was going to hurt I thought that would but again on a scale of 1 to 10 it was about a 2. This totally numbed the entire upper arm. Let me tell you, this was the most relaxed thing I have done. They gave me some awesome soft socks to where to keep my feet warm. They played music and even at one point brought me some food in to eat because it took 5 hours. Anyways, after they infiltrated the arm he went in with a verytiny laser and with an in and out movement started melting the fat. It was weird because as he was doing that some fat was coming out too. That took about an hour (He was very thorough). Then he suctioned it out with a small suction catheter. We talked and laughed the entire time. They gave me a xanax and lortab before the procedure and that really helped. It was completely painfree. This morning I feel a little more sore but I can't tell if it is from the procedure or from the garment because it is so tight. I will keep you guys updated!!

Quite honestly I told the Dr "Why anyone would want the old way of lipo is beyond me". He asked me if I would be his spokesperson, lol!!!

Well it is day 2 post smartlipo and here is what I am experiencing:

Still swelling and now some bruising is being noted. Arms still feel real jiggly like Jello but Dr said that will go away.

The pain is minimal still. I have worked out (did yesterday too) at 25% of what I normally do (dr said walking would help the swelling tremendously). I have cleaned house, done laundry, and vacummed all with little or no pain.

The biggest thing that is annoying is the compression garment that he has me wearing. It comes right down below the elbows and it is causing my skin right in the crook of my elbow it hurt and is red. I got some gauze pads and put them there as a barrier and that has seemed to do the trick.

There seems to be no more drainage and the incisions are healing just fine.

My hubs and I measured my arms yesterday and the initial measurement pre lipo was 15", they were 14" yesterday and that is with all the swelling and Fluid still in them. That made me feel good.

I also went into my closet and tried on a bunch of shirt that either never fit around my arms or were tight and I was elated to see that they all fit just fine now.

So that is my update. I will do this whenever I feel it necessary to do so!