Liposuction
You can achieve the body that you want. An excellent option for many of Dr. Mosser’s San Francisco plastic surgery patients is body contouring through liposuction or liposelection only by Vaser. Those patients with relative areas of fat excess (like "love handles," abdominal, or saddlebag areas) benefit the most from liposuction, but any generalized areas of fat excess also respond well to the procedure. Dr. Mosser utilizes several liposuction techniques depending on the demands of the specific area, including the state-of-the-art Liposelection only by Vaser technique which is a safe use of ultrasonic energy producing smoother results and speedy recovery.
Liposuction or Liposelection (by Vaser) can be performed in virtually any area of the body where stubborn, unwanted deposits of fat are located which do not respond to diet and exercise. The quality of the skin will help determine if liposuction alone, or if liposuction combined with other procedures is right for the patient, such as a tummy tuck, thigh lift or upper arm lift. Bay Area patients have selected liposuction as an effective way to contour thier bodies and have the figure they desire. During your personal consultation, Dr. Mosser will assist you in determining which type of body contouring procedure will give you the results you are looking to achieve. Learn more about Liposuction in San Francisco.
Tummy tuck (Abdominoplasty)
Even with a healthy lifestyle which includes regular exercise, you may have trouble improving certain areas of the body, especially your abdomen. Unfortunately, sagging skin or relaxation of the muscle in the abdominal area cannot be addressed by exercise alone. There is a procedure used to remove excess skin and also to tighten the abdominal muscles beneath which is either referred to as abdominoplasty, also known as a "tummy tuck." San Francisco patients of Dr. Mosser see that there can be a significant improvement in appearance and a reduction in the appearance of a protruding abdomen with a tummy tuck. Bay area patients also have told Dr. Mosser that after this procedure that they have a tighter abdomen, and their clothes fit in a more desirable way.
Not every patient requires a full abdominoplasty. Bay Area plastic surgeon Dr. Mosser has seen in some individuals, those with excellent skin elasticity and muscle tone, can benefit sufficiently from liposuction alone. Others have an isolated problem of loose skin below the navel, and would benefit from simply having a "mini" abdominoplasty. San Francisco patients with this type of anatomy commonly can have a procedure with a much shorter incision and a significantly faster recovery period. Learn more about abdominoplasty in San Francisco.
Body Contouring Procedures After Weight Loss
New surgeries for the bariatric (weight loss) population have made it possible for people to make dramatic changes in their lives. Removing the burden of morbid obesity will often give people the opportunity to participate in life in a much more fulfilling, less encumbered way.
But after large amounts of weight loss there can still be a significant amount of excess skin in the face, arms, abdomen, breasts or lower body which can serve as an unsightly reminder of the past. This excess skin can be readily treated with a number of procedures that have been modified to fit this population and achieve the desired results. Areas of the abdomen, hips and back can be hidden with circumferential extra skin and tissue that has lost its elasticity which can be corrected with a lower body lift. San Francisco patients notice the meticulous artistry when it comes to incisions that often can be easily hidden beneath undergarments. For arm contouring, Dr. Mosser often utilizes the procedure known as the upper arm lift. San Francisco weight loss patients are also encouraged by incision lines that can be hidden under the arms. One of Dr. Mosser’s most recent success stories notes that it was the first time she had ever worn a bikini after having had an upper arm lift and lower body lift. Bay Area patients sometimes have combinations of procedures when appropriate to achieve their body contouring results.
Another area that can receive considerable improvement after weight loss is mid-face, neck and jowl area which can have a natural, refreshed and rested look with a facelift. During their consultation, Bay Area patients learn everything that is available to address all of the areas of concern which includes a variety of facial and body contouring procedures. Dr. Mosser wants you to feel proud of the changes you have made, and it is his goal to help you attain a body shape that takes advantage of your new, thinner self! Learn more about the positive changes you can experience with body contouring surgery in San Francisco.
Upper Arm Lift
Our skin stays as tight as it can, as long as it can. But after considerable weight fluctuation or just because of simple genetics there comes a point where the skin in certain areas is no longer elastic enough to bounce back. The upper arm is one of the areas most susceptible to this problem of skin excess. Patients jokingly refer to this area as their "bat wings" and commonly seek improvement when extra upper arm skin makes it difficult to look good in the clothes they like to wear.
A procedure that Dr. Mosser performs to tighten this area is called an upper arm lift. With an arm lift, incisions hidden within the armpit and sometimes along the inner arm are used to remove excess skin. The incision design and length depend on the amount and location of skin excess and the extent of surgery (as well the probable appearance of the scars) can be learned during an office consultation. Often the plan can be for the scars to be hidden high in the inner upper arm, but regardless, Dr. Mosser can help you decide on the pros and cons of upper arm lift surgery, to decide if it is right for you.
Lower Body Lift (Belt Lipectomy)
When excess skin is in the front of the body, a tummy tuck can help. When the excess and drooping tissues are in the back and buttocks, a buttock lift is the answer. But when there is a considerable amount of extra skin all the way around the trunk, a lower body lift, also called a belt lipectomy, is the procedure of choice. In this procedure, literally a belt of excess skin and fat is removed, all the way around the lower abdomen and back areas. It is the one procedure that can lift the buttocks, lift and smooth the lateral thighs, and tighten and flatten the tummy with one incision, and one scar that is typically hidden in the bikini line. Patients with considerable weight loss are often great candidates for a lower body lift surgery, and it is the most commonly requested single procedure in the weight loss population.
Generally, a lower body lift procedure is performed in conjunction with other plastic surgery procedures, such as a medial thigh lift, and upper arm lift or breast enhancement surgery. Dr. Mosser will decide with a patient, based on his or her goals and health, how many procedures are appropriate to perform under one general anesthesia. Learn more about getting a lower body lift in San Francisco.
Buttock Lift
Sometimes the body is a victim of its own success. Considerable weight loss can make huge improvements in bodily appearance, but they can also have the effect of revealing extra skin and sometimes sagging tissues. When maturity or weight loss leads to extra skin in the buttock areas, the buttocks will typically appear flat, droopy or even concentrate the buttock tissue just above the fold, instead of overlying the main part of the buttock where it belongs.
A buttock lift is a procedure to remove excess skin in the upper butt and lower back areas, which has the effect of lifting the buttock tissues to their former position. Sagging tissues are lifted and removed and a flat rear end becomes rounder. Additionally, the aesthetic transition between the buttocks and the thighs can be greatly improved.
Some patients at first think that a buttock lift is the best option, but really the skin is not a problem at all, rather it is an issue of tissue volume. In these patients, they would benefit instead simply from fat grafting to the buttocks (also called a Brazilian Butt Lift), which provides roundness, projection and gives the area a better-defined shape. Dr. Mosser's careful technique of "micro-fat grafting" can provide a much more reliable way to augment the buttocks than was previously available with traditional fat grafting approaches. Please see below.
San Francisco Brazilian Butt Lift Surgery
(Micro fat grafting to the buttocks)
More and more, San Francisco patients are requesting an improvement in the buttock area when they come to our office. Though there are a few ways to augment the buttocks, there is only one technique that uses your own fat tissue to improve your buttock size and shape, and that is the Brazilian Butt Lift.
A Brazilian Butt Lift surgery is a way to naturally augment the buttocks and improve the contour between the hips and buttocks to give your back side a beautiful, feminine curve. It is not a buttock implant with an artificial implant material. Brazilian Butt Lift surgery utilizes your own excess fat in unwanted areas, such as your waistline, to improve the projection and shape of your buttocks in a process called “microlipoinjection” fat grafting. Though this procedure requires a lot of skill and hard work by the surgeon, it is the most meticulous and precise technique available for fat grafting to ensure accurate placement of the tiny fat particles. This allows as much of the fat as possible to survive long-term. Read more about San Francisco Brazilian Butt Lift Surgery.
Thigh Lift (Medial Thigh Lift)
The upper inner thigh and the upper inner arm have a lot in common. They are the areas where our body often stores excess fat, and they are also the area where our skin is very unforgiving. Some spots of the body, like the calves and forearms, can expand and contract with body weight changes and often never show any signs of skin excess. However the upper thigh and upper arm areas are not so kind, and can be the first to show a loss of skin elasticity with either age or weight loss. When the problem is a significant amount of skin excess, there is only one real way to tighten the area: by lifting and removing the extra skin with a thigh lift.
A medial thigh lift is a procedure to remove the excess hanging skin in the upper thighs. It involves an incision that is typically well-hidden in the groin area, and sometimes (depending on the nature of the skin excess) will need to be along the inner thigh as well. The resultant contour of the leg will be a considerable improvement over the hanging sheets of skin excess that can be present on the inner thigh before surgery. On the other hand, if the skin is in good shape, then a thigh lift might not be necessary at all: liposuction can work wonders in areas that have excess fat but still benefit from excellent overlying skin elasticity.
Labiaplasty (vaginal lip reduction)
Of all the corrective and reconstruction surgical techniques performed, labiaplasty is probably one of the least discussed and least advertised. It is, however, becoming more and more frequently requested. Many more plastic surgeons are adding labiaplasty to their schedules as more patients seek information and help.
Many women suffer from oversized or asymmetrical inner labia (labia minora), the folds of skin or inner lips surrounding the entrance to the vagina. Elongated inner labia which extend past the outer vaginal lips (labia majora) are often a source of sexual embarrassment as well as causing discomfort when wearing bathing suits or other revealing or tight-fitting clothing.
Also, following childbirth (especially a difficult one), vaginal muscles and contours are often changed and the labia are left stretched and lax, sometimes leading to negative changes in sexual response and comfort. When this occurs, labiaplasty is often performed together with vaginoplasty, or vaginal tightening.
When only labiaplasty surgery is being performed it is usually done under local anesthesia with mild sedation, and generally takes about thirty minutes. There is some pain, swelling and discomfort during recovery, however, the patient can usually return to work in just two or three days, and return to regular sexual activity after six weeks. Learn more about Labiaplasty in San Francisco.
